YRP, The Sorority Three
by Kouga518
Summary: A crazy AU about the three if they were in college.  RikkuPaine fiction as always, but with more plot.  Rated T for some language and eventual suggestive dialouge.  No mature content.
1. Not Your Ordinary Day

A/N: Standard disclaimer applies. If you don't know what the standard disclaimer is, than read my profile. You'll find it there.

This is a very crazy, wacky, off the wall shoujo-ai fiction I came up with the other day. It's slightly AU, but I'm keeping the environments, characters, personalities, etc... as close to their originals as possible. And this fiction will be a Rikku and Paine pairing only. I'm not going to write other couples into it (aside from dialog references). Also, NO LEMON IS PRESENT!!! If you find yourself getting sick to your stomach by reading all these little warnings, then use that friendly little back button on your browser. Otherwise, enjoy the fiction!

YRP, The Sorority Three

Chapter 1: Not your ordinary day

"Hey Rikku! Wake up!" Yuna called to her cousin. Instead of obeying, her cousin just snored louder. So again, Yuna spoke. "Rikku, your going to be late for class, get up." The Al Bhed just rolled over and snored again.

Annoyed by the lack of response, Yuna finally thrust herself out of her own bed and looked up at the bunk above. Her cousin was sprawled out across the bed, with the covers thrown everywhere. "This is your last chance to get up, or I'm getting you up my way!" Yuna warned. Still no response. Yuna let out a long sigh, and then reached one of the plastic boxes that she kept under the bed. After digging around for a minute, she found what she was looking for.

With a little devilish grin, Yuna looked the object over. It was a simple airhorn, but written across it in sharpie marker was "In case Rikku refuses to get up." Yuna took a few steps back and pressed the button on the top of the horn. A loud screech suddenly filled the room, producing the desired effect.

Rather ungracefully, Rikku shot right up, then promptly fell down the ladder as she tried to climb down. "Owie!" She said, scratching the back of her head. She slowly stood up and looked her cousin dead in the eye. "What did you do that for! I was having a good dream!" Yuna did her best to suppress a laugh. "I tried waking you up the easy way, but you didn't want to. Now you need to get dressed or you'll be late for class!" With that, Yuna returned the airhorn back to it's home.

"What are you talking about, it's only...HOLY CRAP!" The small digital clock that was kept on the top of the dresser read 7:00 A.M. Rikku had class in about 30 minutes. Throwing open the dresser, she yanked out a yellow T-shirt and some socks. She then ran to the closet and pulled out a pair of shorts and threw herself into the restroom to change. Five minutes later, she ran out and threw her pajamas into the small laundry hamper they kept near the closet.

The two cousins had been attending the University now for 3 months. Rikku's father, Cid, had agreed to pay for all their tuition and living expenses, so long as they made good grades. But to save money, the two agreed to be room mates in the same dorm. The dorm they shared was not a bad size. As one entered, a bunk bed was situated against the right hand wall. The two had agreed that Yuna could have the lower bunk, mainly due to Rikku losing two rounds at rock, paper, scissors.

Against the left hand wall was a small walk-in closet and a desk that could comfortably seat two people. On the wall opposite the door was a dresser the two shared for storing their shirts, blouses, and socks. Sitting on the floor was a TV, complete with attached game console. Games for the console were unceremoniously spread around the TV. Next to closet, against the same wall as the door, was a small bathroom. The bathroom had a small tub with attached shower head, a mirror, medicine cabinet, sink, and toilet.

"Ah, Yunie, what did I do with my shoes!" Rikku said, frantically searching around for them with her backpack slung over one shoulder. Yuna was busy brushing her hair as she responded, "Probably by the door, like they always are." Rikku found them there, and quickly got them on.

"Okay, I'm going to class. See you later!" Rikku shouted as she bolted out the door. Yuna shouted back just as the door closed, "But what about breakfast?"

Algebra Class, 7:30 A.M. +++

Rikku slid into her seat just as the teacher began. Fortunately for her, Professor Dona didn't notice she had ALMOST been late to class. Again. Unfortunately, Dona had prepared a pop quiz for her students.

"Since most of you haven't been timely in turning in your homework, then I've decided to test to see if you've been paying attention at all. Please complete this 10 question quiz and turn in to me. You have 20 minutes to complete the quiz. After that, we will begin today's lecture." With this, everyone began scribbling on their quizzes.

Rikku took almost the entire 20 minutes to complete her quiz, but turned it in on time. She had studied some last night, so she hoped she had retained enough to actually pass that quiz. Her last couple of quizzes were getting a little too close to the bottom of the grade chain.

The remaining 40 minutes of class went by at a snails pace, just like it always did. As Dona released the students, Rikku ran out the door towards the cafeteria. Though she knew she was going to be delayed as soon as she entered the hallway.

There was a large crowd of screaming girls standing in the middle of the corridor. Rikku knew what a large crowd of screaming girls meant. Gippal. And sure enough, there he was. Standing right in the middle of the crowd was Gippal, basking in the public spotlight as was his usual thing. Why he was doing it at 8:30 in the morning on Monday was beyond her understanding, but usually, things didn't make sense when Gippal was involved. Rikku began to very quietly and sneakily walk the opposite direction, hoping that he wouldn't notice that she was nearby.

"Well, well, if it isn't the fallen angel herself. Need me to help you get your wings back?" Gippal said, complemented by his usually cheesy finger point. Rikku let out a loud sigh. "_So much for avoiding Gippal this morning._" Rikku spun around to see him walking toward her. She almost gagged when she got a whiff of his cologne.

"Good morning, Gippal." Rikku said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. Since the day she walked into the university, Gippal has tried to get her sleep with him. And it seemed that the more Rikku told him no, made fun of him, and walked away from him, he didn't get the hint. He just got more determined.

"So as class president here at the University of Central Luca, it is my presidential duty to have a first lady for prom night coming up here in a few months. Now there are many who would love to fill that position, I think you would be the best choice. Consider it a showing of school support." Gippal said, striking his most masculine pose.

Rikku raised an eyebrow at him and spoke, "Oh really? Or do you mean that it would be a showing of school support if I were to sleep with you?"

Gippal flashed a cheesy grin, "Hey, if after the dance you're feeling a little hot and bothered and need to unwind, I would consider it my presidential duty to help a fellow student."

Rikku scratched her chin for a moment, pretending to think about it. "Hmmm, now that's a tempting offer. How about this; what if I told you that I would rather sleep with a chocobo for the rest of my days than spend one night in bed with you." There was a chorus of "oooooooooohhhhh's" as Rikku spun on her heel and walked off, with a very satisfied grin on her face.

Gippal just shrugged it off. "Oh, yea, she wants me." He said, and began walking down the opposite corridor toward the courtyard, his entourage in tow.

+++ Student Union, School Cafeteria Area +++

Rikku looked about for a few moments until she spotted her cousin sitting at a small table in the corner. As was usual of Yuna, she was sitting by herself, with a salad in front of her, reading a book. The only difference in the situation was that normally Rikku was in front of where Yuna, so her cousin usually saw her coming. Today, Rikku was behind Yuna. So with cat-like grace and stealth, Rikku snuck up behind her cousin and poked her in the side.

Yuna jumped up and let loose a little yelp, causing Rikku to about fall over laughing. Yuna shot her a death-glare as she sat down. "You know I don't like it when you do that." Rikku stopped laughing long enough to respond, "And I don't like it when you wake me up with the airhorn, so we're even." Yuna thought about that for a moment, then just shrugged. "Alright, we're even."

Rikku placed her bag on the table and was about to stand up when a waitress came by and placed a plate of food pancakes, bacon and eggs in front of her. Rikku looked at her cousin with a raised eyebrow. "You were late, so I ordered your food already." Rikku grabbed a fork as she spoke, "Am I that predictable?" Yuna looked at her and said, "Afraid so. Maybe you should try ordering something else." Yuna flipped the page in her book before she continued, "So why were you late?"

Rikku shoveled a large helping of scrambled eggs into her mouth before she spoke, "Gippal cut me off in the hallway." Yuna looked up at him, "Oh, god. Again? Doesn't he take no for an answer?"

Rikku responded, "I guess not." Yuna ate some of her salad, "Though you should try to find someone for the prom. You like to dance, but it seems silly to do it by yourself. Especially at prom."

Rikku rolled her eyes, "Oh come on! Give me a break! I can't find a guy I like! If I find one I can get to like, I'll ask them out. Besides, your one to talk about finding someone." Rikku concluded by sticking her tongue out at her cousin.

Yuna took her glasses off and looked her cousin in the eye, "What are you talking about?" Rikku narrowed her eyes at her cousin, "Oh don't play dumb. I know you've got the hots for Tidus. I've stayed up later than you before. You know you talk in your sleep, right?" Rikku grabbed her backpack and hugged it, then did her best impression of Yuna, "Oh, Tidus. I love you. I love you. Will you go to the prom with me? Will you go out with me? Will you sign my textbook?" Yuna's cheeks went slightly red as Rikku continued to cuddle and nuzzle her back pack. "I, uh, have no idea what your talking about." She then quickly buried her head behind her book so that Rikku couldn't look at her anymore.

Rikku just laughed, sounding victorious. "Ha! I'm right. You do like him! Why don't you ask him out all ready and get it over with instead of trying to run my love life?" Yuna meekly responded from behind her book, "Because he probably wouldn't speak to someone like me."

Almost as if by fate, a voice suddenly spoke next to Yuna. "Excuse me, miss, but I was wondering if you had Professor Issaru's history class today at 11 A.M.?" Yuna looked up, only to see Tidus standing right there next to her, smiling.

There was a very timid reply from Yuna's lips, "Um, yes." Tidus breathed a sigh of relief, "Oh thank goodness! Look, if it's not too much trouble, would you mind telling him that blitzball practice it going to run longer than I thought this morning? And would you mind if I borrowed your notes later. I hate to be a burden, but we have that test coming up and I don't want to bomb it."

Yuna looked flabbergasted for just a second, but finally gained enough cohesion to speak again, "Yes, sure, that won't be a problem."

Tidus smiled again, "Oh thank you, miss..."

"...it's Yuna."

Tidus gave her a curt bow, "Thank you miss Yuna. I'll try to repay you later if I can." With that, he ran out of the cafeteria to catch up with his team.

Yuna stared in that direction for some time, with a goofy looking smile plastered to her face. Rikku looked at her cousin for a few minutes before finally saying something.

"You know, Yunie, if you keep looking at that spot on the wall long enough, you'll burn a hole through it." Yuna didn't respond. "Uh, Spira to Yuna. Spira to Yuna. Come in Yuna!" Still nothing. Rikku waved her hand in front of her cousins face, then snapped her fingers together. This finally broke Yuna of her torpor.

"Huh, wha, who?" Yuna looked around for a moment, as if in a daze.

Rikku just shook her head, "Real slick there Juliet."

Yuna just buried her head in her book again to avoid her cousins looks.

+++ Magical Arts Class, 10:30 A.M. +++

Rikku made it to class 15 minutes early, which was just long enough to finish her homework before the start of class. Having finished it, she placed all her materials on her desk and sat straight up, trying to look as attentive as possible. Magical arts wasn't exactly her best subject, but she wasn't failing the class. At least not completely.

Lulu was not a overly strict teacher, but there were standards that she expected her students to maintain. Rikku's last test was a complete bomb, which took her grade down to a C. Fortunately, Lulu allowed her to come in after class and do some extra credit, which brought her grade back up to a B.

There was a small amount of murmuring in the room as students chatted back and forth, but all of the talking stopped dead on 10:30. One of Lulu's standards was that all talking ceased as soon as class started, but could be resumed after roll was called. However, dead on 10:30 no one could see Lulu anywhere. A few students began to talk again, usually in questions like "Where's Lu?" or "Did class get canceled for the day?"

After a few moments, Lulu did step into class. As soon as the door opened, all noise ceased. Lulu crossed in front of her desk and took a seat in her chair. She then spoke.

"I apologize for the delay students. There was a small matter that the Dean and I needed to take care of. It seems we have a new student in class." There was a small amount of murmuring for a minute before Lulu raised her hand to stop everyone's talking. "I want all of you to welcome the newest student to the university."

The new girl walked into the room, cautiously looking around the room as she walked toward the professor's desk. Rikku looked at the girl with excitement, hoping to make a new friend.

What Rikku didn't know was just how much of a friend this new girl would become.

End Note: Hope everyone enjoyed the first chapter. The second one will be up soon too.

Second End Note: And for those of you wondering: Yes. I hate Gippal. A lot. Get used to it.


	2. The New Girl

A/N: Standard disclaimer again. I don't own anything basically. Second story in my college/FF X-2 crossover fiction. Hope you all enjoy!

**Chapter 2:**

**The New Girl**

Everyone took a moment to look the new girl over carefully as she stood at the front of the room. She had silver hair that she kept cut short and gelled. Her skin was very pale, almost as if she weren't alive. She wore a black tank top and blue jeans, complemented by a pair of black high-heeled boots. The most noticeable, yet peculiar thing about her was that her eyes were a deep crimson color. Even from the back of the room, Rikku got the feeling that those eyes were staring straight into everyone's soul. It was so creepy that it even made her shiver a little.

"Now class, I'd like you all to meet our new student. May the class please get to know your name?" Lulu looked at the new girl with a quizzical glance.

"...Paine." The answer was a little hesitant and short.

Lulu looked back at the rest of the class. "I would like you all to treat Paine with courtesy and respect. Am I understood?" There was a chorus of "Yes, Professor Lulu", then Paine went and took a seat near the front of the class.

"_Wow, she's quiet. Maybe she's just nervous that this is her first day. But I wonder where she transferred from?_" Rikku looked at Paine from her seat, almost as if trying to learn all there was to know about her by staring very intently at the back of her skull. "_Maybe I'll talk to her after class. She might just need a friend._"

+++ Corridor outside the Magical Arts Building, 12:30 P.M. +++

Rikku had placed herself right next to door leading into the classroom so that she could catch the new girl as she walked out. Class had been long, but Rikku was happy with herself for a change. She was actually able to finally cast a second level fire spell. It had only taken her 15 times, but she finally did it.

"_Now Yuna's got nothing on me in this class_" Rikku thought, with a big smile stuck on her face. After a few minutes of waiting, Paine did indeed walk out of the classroom. Rikku noticed though that she had left after everyone else did. Maybe she was trying to avoid people waiting for her after class.

People like Rikku. "Hi!" Rikku said to her. Paine obviously wasn't expecting anyone to be waiting, as she physically jumped in surprise when Rikku spoke. She turned around and took a look at the younger Al Bhed girl. "Is there something I can help you with?" she asked in a monotone voice.

"No, but I thought you could use some company!"

"Why do you think that?"

"Because you new here, and you don't know very many people. So I thought I could help you out some!"

"I don't need it."

"Oh come on! Everyone needs a little help now and then!"

"Not me." Paine started walking down the corridor, but Rikku seemed undeterred and followed her.

"Where did you transfer from?"

"Out of town."

"Where did you go to high school?"

"Out of town."

"Did you have any friends where you came from."

"No." Paine stopped and looked her in the eye. "I need to get to my other class, so do you mind leaving me alone." With that, Paine began walking into the classroom near her.

"Well, wait! Don't you even want to know my name?" Rikku shouted.

"No." With that, Paine closed the door.

Rikku stood there for a minute astounded, then just shouted, "MEANIE!" With that, she walked back to her dorm.

+++ Rikku and Yuna's Dorm Room, 1:00 P.M. +++

"And then she closed the door in my face!" Rikku said, hopping up and down. Yuna, who was sitting at the table studying, spoke. "Well Rikku, she's new. Maybe she's just shy and uncomfortable. You remember what it was like when you first got here, don't you?" Yuna asked.

"Well yea, I do, but I didn't shut the door in the face of people! That was just mean!" Rikku finished by waving her arms up and down in the air. Yuna just giggled, "I wouldn't worry about it. I'm sure when she feels ready, she'll open up some. But anyways, we got a package today. One for each of us." Rikku suddenly forgot the previous discussion, "Oh! What is it? What is it?"

Yuna went into the closet and retrieved both packages. "I don't know, but they're awfully big and heavy." She put both down on the middle of the floor. They both had a card attached to the top, so Rikku ripped open the envelope on the one addressed to her and read the card.

"Rikku,

Since you've been doing fairly well in you classes, I thought it was high time I got you a little reward. So here it is. These are the newest, state of the art, laptop computers available on the market. I've already got them set up for the two of you, so all you need to do is turn them on and use them! Hope you two like them!

Sincerely,

Cid

P.S. Rikku, these are for STUDYING! Don't go and overload them with the weird music and games that you have!"

Rikku stuck her tongue out at the card. "And how's he going to know if I put games on it or not?" The computers were nice though. So the two spent the next few hours customizing their computers for later use. Yuna began uploading test preparation software on to hers, while Rikku busily started moving her music on to it.

Before long, the digital clock was displaying 5:30 as the time. Rikku let out a groan. "Oh man, is it that late?" Yuna looked up and asked, "What's the matter?" Rikku changed into some sweat pants and a sports bra, "I have my physical defense and fitness class in half an hour." Yuna chuckled under her breath. "It's not funny! I'm gonna be sore all day tomorrow now." Rikku sighed and grabbed up her gym bag, then headed for the gym.

+++ School Gymnasium, Defense Class Training Area, 6:00 P.M. +++

Everyone was sitting around on the padded floor just as the instructor entered the training area. Everyone at once stood up and got into 5 single file lines. Once everyone was at attention, the instructor spoke.

"Kimhari is pleased to see that class is on time today. Kimhari say that class not need to do laps." There was a sigh of relief from everyone in the class. If even one person is late to class, Kimhari made the entire class do 20 laps around the track. So it was a common practice to beat up the late person to 'persuade' them to be more punctual next time.

The elder Ronso examined the class for just a moment before speaking. "Class is also dressed in training clothes. Kimhari is pleased." He then reached for his clipboard and began reading one of the papers to himself.

"Before class begins today, Kimhari has been informed of new student in class." Kimhari looked behind him and beckoned someone who was standing just out of sight from the rest of the students. Rikku about jumped up and down with excitement. Paine walked in, still wearing the tanktop, but now with a pair of training sweats and sneakers on.

"New student name is Paine. Paine will need training partner." Several people were just staring at her, trying to size her up. Rikku shot her hand up and waved it back and forth, "Instructor, I'll be her training partner!"

Kimhari thought about it for a moment, then said, "Very well." With that, Paine walked over to her. "Class will do normal warm-up, then class will practice blocking and evading."

After a few minutes of stretching, everyone split up into teams of two and began practicing the blocking. One person would attack, while the other tried to block or evade the attack.

Paine blocked first while Rikku attacked. "So it seems we meet again, Miss Mysterious!" Rikku kicked straight at her chest, which Paine easily blocked. "It would seem." Rikku then tried to do a trip kick, but Paine just jumped over it. "If we're going to be training buddies, don't you think you should at least know my name."

Paine shrugged and went on the offense suddenly. Her first attack was a surprise, but Rikku sidestepped it easily enough. "Maybe." Paine then launched a side kick to Rikku's right side, but Rikku caught it. "You don't say much, do you?" Paine sent a punch straight for her gut, but Rikku grabbed it and used Paine's own arm to flip her to the ground.

Paine went down easily enough, but soon was obvious as to why. As soon as Paine hit the ground, she launched her left leg out at Rikku's legs and swept her off her feet. Quite literally. As soon as Rikku hit the ground, Paine threw herself on top of her and pinned her.

"I don't say much when I'm concentrating." Paine said simply. Rikku let out a little chuckle, "Point noted." Paine got off and let Rikku back up, where the two resumed. Though it seemed Paine was full of surprises. As soon as the two got up, Paine launched herself at Rikku, fully intent on tackling her.

But Rikku was ready this time. Shortly before the tackle hit her, she leapt up and over Paine, landing just behind her. She then stuck her right foot out in front of Paine, causing her to trip and fall over face first onto the padded mat. As soon as she hit, Rikku threw herself on Paine's back and pinned her arms and legs down.

Paine struggled for a moment to break free, but Rikku had her arms and legs in a controlling position. Eventually, she gave it up entirely. "Alright, I give." Rikku leapt up in victory, cheering herself on. Paine got up and looked her over for a minute. "So what's you name?"

Rikku about fell over in surprise, but she was able to speak, "It's Rikku! Nice to meet you!" Paine thought about it for a minute, "Rikku, huh?" Rikku nodded her head a few times, but was then surprised when Paine tripped her up and pinned her down again. "You need to train some more, Rikku."

"Meanie." Was her only answer. Both of them went back and forth like this until the end of class. As Rikku dragged herself back to her dorm, she smiled to herself. "_I'm doing it! I'm breaking through her hard exterior! She really does want a friend!_" She then let out a groan of pain. Her whole body ached from all the trips and falls she had taken. "_Owie! Friendship hurts!_"

End Note: This one was a little shorter, but I think it said everything it needed to. I shall be working on the next chapter ASAP. Until then, enjoy!


	3. Unexpected Circumstances

A/N: Is anyone getting bored of me saying 'standard disclaimer applies' yet? Well anyways, this is the third chapter in the series. Don't like, don't read. Simple as that.

**Chapter 3:**

**Unexpected Circumstances**

Rikku awoke to her cousin poking her in the side. She looked down to see that not only was she standing there poking her, but she had also been so tired that she hadn't changed out of her clothing from the previous evening. Rikku let out a loud groan and rolled over on her side.

"Man, I'm glad I don't have to take that defense class." Yuna said. "You pretty much collapsed once you hit the pillow." Rikku was STILL sore from last night, and was in no mood to get out of bed. "That new girl packs a wallop." Rikku murmured, doing her best to fall asleep again. Yuna chuckled, "Oh, did she beat you up in class?" Rikku rolled over and gave her cousin a death glare. "She didn't beat me up, she just, well..."

"Face it Rikku, she whooped you. Now maybe you ought to get up and walk around. It might make the aches and pains go away faster than just laying there like a lump." Rikku yawned and rolled over again. "Don't wanna." Yuna put her hands at her hips and spoke again, "Don't you have a class that you'll miss?" Rikku let out another yawn as she spoke, "I don't have class until 3."

Yuna just sighed, "Alright, fine. Just lay there. But if you're late to class, don't blame me. I'm off to class myself, I'll see you later." Rikku made a half hearted attempt to wave to her cousin as she walked out the door, but just fell asleep again instead.

3 hours later +++

Rikku was awoken again by the sound of someone knocking on the door. She stuck her head under the pillow, but whoever was outside was very persistent. Rikku mustered enough strength to look at the clock on the dresser. It was noon. Grumbling, she got out of her bed and stumbled over to the door. She flung it open, and about fell over in surprise.

Paine was standing right outside the door to the room. She stood there with her arms crossed, looking right at Rikku. "Did I wake you?" Rikku quickly shook her head from side to side and did her best to act like she'd been up for a while. "No, no! You didn't wake me. I was just, uh, doing my morning exercises! Yes, up and early." Paine cocked an eyebrow at her, "Whatever you say. May I come it?"

Rikku looked surprised, "Uh, wha...oh yea! Sure! Come on in." She moved aside so Paine could get in and closed the door behind her. As Rikku turned around, Paine tossed a bottle of aspirin at her. "Take two of those and it'll help with the muscle ache." Rikku just scratched the back of her head. Seems Paine could see right through her. "So, uh, how'd you find my dorm?" Paine grabbed the chair from desk and sat down in it, the back of chair against her chest. "The names of the occupants are outside the door. I just walked around until I found yours. Or did you forget?" Rikku let out a small chuckle. Paine pulled an energy bar from out of her back pocket. "Who's Yuna, incidentally?"

Rikku took a seat on the floor before she spoke. "She's my cousin. We're just boarding in together while we go to school. Do you have any family here?" Paine shook her head, "No. But that's not why I am here." Rikku suddenly perked up. "Well, what's on your mind?" Paine took a big bite out of the bar, "Well, I noticed that your not so good in the physical fitness class." Rikku waved her hands in front of her, "I am too! I was, uh, just having a bad night last night." Paine just sighed, "Whatever helps you sleep better at night. Anyway, I also noticed that you did much better in the magical arts class."

Rikku thought about this for a moment. She wasn't the BEST in the class, but she was doing much better. Even Lulu thought she was making improvements. "So, what about it then?" Rikku asked inquisitively. Paine looked her in the eye, "I thought we could become study partners." Rikku looked at her with shock. "Wha, what do you mean?"

Paine just smirked, "Well, I'll help you in the defense class, and you can help me in the magical arts class. And if discover that one of us is falling behind in another class, we help each other get through it." Rikku suddenly understood. "Oh, okay. Sure! What other classes do you have with me that you know of?" Paine yanked a small piece of paper out of her left pocket and read it over quickly. "I have algebra and history with you." Rikku let out a small growl, "I HATE history class. Math is not so bad, but history! That man is a BORE!" Rikku then eyed Paine over with a suspicious eye. "Hey wait a second, how did you get that schedule? How'd you find out what classes I had with you?"

Paine smiled a little, "Easy. I just talked to all my professors and asked if I could find out who was in all the classes. I told them I needed a study buddy. And today is your lucky day. I'm pretty good with history. So you can help me with math." Rikku shot up and smiled, "It's a deal. Shake?" She stuck her hand out. Paine examined it for a moment before responding, "Sure." So the two shook hands.

"I knew you just needed a friend." Rikku exclaimed, taking a victory stance. Paine just sighed, "Don't get too excited. It's just for our own benefit. Mostly yours." Rikku just stuck her tongue out at her, "You say that now, but you may find out you like me!" Paine let out a huff, "Don't hold your breath."

Paine looked at her watch and got up to leave. "I'll be down at the student union. I need some lunch." Just as she reached the door, she turned back around. "Oh, and Rikku?"

Rikku smiled and said, "Yes?"

"Take a shower. You smell like the rear end of a chocobo." With that, she left.

Rikku just stuck out her tongue and said, "Meanie!"

Issaru's History Class, 3 P.M. +++

Rikku made it to class just in time. Issaru, however, was 5 minutes late as always. As he took his seat at his desk, he began unloading all his notes and papers out of his oversized bag. Based on how many he was pulling out, Rikku knew it was going to be a long class. Somehow, 2 hours of normal time was about 10 hours in history class.

So, like she always did, Rikku fell asleep just as soon as he started talking. Every once and a while, she would half-way wake up, make out a few sentences, then pass out again. After what felt like 5 minutes, she felt a sharp slap to the back of her head.

"No, I'm not sleeping in class!" Rikku snapped awake and looked around. When she didn't see anyone in front of her, she turned around. There Paine stood, with her arms crossed over her chest, giving Rikku a hard stare.

"Well, now I can see why aren't doing so well in this class." Rikku let loose a small grin and scratched the back of her head. "Okay, so I have some, little quirks I need to work out." Rikku looked around, finally noticing that no one was in the room. "Hey, where'd everyone go?" Paine just cocked an eyebrow at her. "Class ended 10 minutes ago."

Rikku just let out a sigh, "Oh. Sorry." Paine just started walking toward the door. "Just try to stay awake next time." She turned and looked at Rikku, who was still seated at her desk. Paine put her hands on her hips, "Are you coming, or did you plan on staying there all day?" Rikku stared out her quizzically. "Uh, where we going?"

"My dorm room."

"OH COOL! Uh, why?"

"You want today's notes, right?"

"Oh, well, yea kinda."

Paine then went for the door and opened it, "Then get moving."

Rikku snatched up all her school materials, thrust them back into her bag, and chased after Paine. "Wait, hold up! God, don't be so pushy!"

Paine's Dorm, 30 minutes later +++

When people talk about spartan living conditions, they would be describing Paine's dorm room to the letter. While Rikku and Yuna's room was well decorated and had many modern luxuries, Paine's room was barren. A bed was situated on the right hand wall from the door, with a small dresser sitting next to it. Like in Rikku's room, there was a bathroom, a small walk-in closet, and a desk for working, but besides that, the room was bare of any decoration or device.

Rikku was actually astounded by how plain it was. She'd been a few other people's dorm rooms, but this one was by far the most barren one she'd been in. "Where's all your stuff at?" Rikku asked.

"Your looking at it."

Rikku's jaw dropped. "WHAT! THIS IS IT!" Paine shrugged her shoulders, "Yes. Why, is there a problem?"

"Well, this is so bare! Don't you have a TV or something? I mean, what do you do to unwind after your done studying and doing your homework?"

Paine looked at her odd, "I go for a walk. You should try it instead of wasting time in front of the TV."

Rikku pressed on, still completely flabbergasted at the lack of furnishings. "You mean you don't have anything electronic besides the clock on the dresser"

Paine shrugged, "I have a laptop in my closet, but that's for studying. Not for gaming, if that's what your referring to." Rikku's eyes lit up, "Well what about instant messaging?"

Paine raised an eyebrow, "What are you talking about?"

"It's a thing you can do online! It lets you talk to other people over the internet." Rikku made a typing motion with her hands while she spoke.

Paine just sighed, "Have you ever tried just going up to people and talking to them?"

Rikku waved her hands in a dismissal motion, "Well, yea. We're doing that now, aren't we? But what if you're already online and you can't go out for some reason? What if you need to ask someone something, but you don't know where they are? You should try it sometime, it can be fun. Plus, the University has a special channel that allows you to find people who are attending classes here, that way if you miss class, you can just chat up one of your friends and get the days notes!"

Paine scratched her chin for a minute, "Maybe I'll try it, if it'll make you leave me alone about it." Rikku just gave her a grin, "Sticks and stones, Paine!"

"We're losing track of what we came here to do. Here, pull up a chair. I'll help you with your history notes and you can give me a hand with algebra." So the two spent the next few hours going over each other's notes and answering each other's questions. For whatever reason, history seemed to make more sense to Rikku now that Paine was explaining the notes and reading to her.

"This all makes sense now! How come your better at explaining this than Issaru is?" Rikku asked, taking a moment to stretch.

Paine finished writing something down in her notebook while she answered, "Maybe because your awake now." Rikku laughed, "That could be it. Or maybe your just a better teacher than he is."

Paine didn't respond to the last comment, she just glanced over at the clock on her dresser. It glowed the time 9:15 P.M. in red at them. "I'm going to go to bed. I'll see you tomorrow at 6." Paine got up and started moving into the bathroom to get ready for bed.

Rikku started packing her things up, then stopped. "Wait a minute. Why 6?" Paine poked her head out, "So I can help get you in shape for physical fitness class. Good night." With that, Paine closed the bathroom door.

Rikku shrugged. Rather than responding, she grabbed her things and left.

Rikku and Yuna's Dorm, 15 minutes later +++

Rikku quietly opened up the door to her own dorm and entered, closing it just as quietly behind her. To her surprise, Yuna was just leaving the bathroom as she entered.

"Where have you been all day? I came back her and couldn't find you anywhere." Yuna asked, tossing her laundry in the basket nearby.

Rikku tossed her own bag down near the foot of the bed, "I was at Paine's dorm. We were studying." Yuna sat down on her bed and looked up at her cousin, "Oh, really. Was she that person you were trying to be friends with?"

Rikku just flashed her a grin and gave her a thumbs up, "Yup. You were right too, she's opening up some more. She's still not very talkative though. And you should see her dorm. It's so BARREN!" Yuna threw the covers over herself, "What do you mean?" Rikku shrugged her shoulders, "Like she has nothing in it! No TV! No radio! All she has is a laptop, but she uses that for studying apparently. She doesn't even have any music on it!"

"Oh really? A person that has a computer and doesn't play games on it? How unusual!" Yuna chuckled. Rikku stuck her tongue out at her, "Not everyone in the world has to be a nerd, ya know!"

Yuna laughed, "Yes, but it is the nerds who will take over the planet some day. And I will be the most powerful among them." Both of them laughed. "So are you planning on going to bed soon, or are you going to pull an all nighter again?" Yuna asked, half yawning.

Rikku started unpacking her computer, "I'm just gonna be on for like another hour, then I'm gonna hit the sack." Yuna let out a long yawn, "Alright, just don't make too much noise. I've got class early tomorrow." With that, Yuna fell asleep.

Rikku then opened up her instant messaging program and logged into it. She smiled. "_I'll bet she was just fibbing and she'll be on here in just a minute._" Rikku sat there for the next hour waiting for her to get online until she was too tired and fell asleep at her keyboard.

End Note: Hope everyone enjoyed this one! I'll have number four up ASAP!


	4. Full of Surprises

A/N: The fourth installment in my little wacky AU shoujo-ai. When I'll stop, not even I know! Hope you all enjoy this chapter.

**Chapter 4:**

**Full of Surprises**

"Well, at least you slept some." The sound of Yuna's voice snapped Rikku awake in an instant. "Did we forget what the bed was for?" Rikku just stuck her tongue out at her.

"For your information, I was waiting on someone." Rikku yawned and stretched out in the chair before standing up. "I guess they went to sleep early last night." Rikku moved to the restroom to change.

"Oh, you mean people other than me actually go to sleep at a regular time. How shocking." Yuna droned sarcastically, pretending to be shocked. Rikku responded by throwing her shirt at her cousin before closing the bathroom door, which Yuna sidestepped easily. "Don't you have a class soon, Rikku? It's almost 7:30 now."

Rikku responded from inside the bathroom, "No, not this morning. Before I fell asleep last night, I checked my email. The professor sent a notice to everyone telling us that class was canceled and would resume on Friday."

"Lucky. I wish I could get a morning off." Yuna responded as she grabbed her bag and headed out the door. "Well, I'm off. See you later."

Student Union, 7:30 AM +++

Normally, Rikku would be in math class scribbling notes in her notebook or taking a quiz. So it was a nice change to be eating breakfast at this time instead. "_Though it's sorta boring to be eating breakfast at this time in the morning by yourself._" Rikku was sitting in the sparsely populated cafeteria by herself. Normally, her cousin would be here too, but she was in class right now. So Rikku took to reading her notes from Magical Arts, since she still had to go to that class in a few hours. She was in middle of studying the hand motions for lightning based magics when a familiar voice broke her thoughts.

"Oh, so you mean you actually do stay quiet sometimes? I was beginning to think you talked to yourself when no one else is around."

Rikku looked up to see Paine standing there, holding a tray of food. Rikku just stuck her tongue out at her. "You could try being nice for a change. That would be shocking."

Paine just smirked, "Whatever you say. This seat taken?"

"Uh, no, why?"

"Because I don't want to sit in someone else's seat."

"Oh, well, no you can sit there."

Paine put the tray down and sat down in the seat. "So I take it you figured out that class was canceled?"

Rikku smiled, "Yup! I checked my email last night and found out! Saved me a trip. So what did you plan to do until Magical Arts class."

"Same thing your doing. Study."

"Well, you want some help? We are study buddies now, remember."

Paine got her notebook out of her bag, "I'm sure if I ever forgot, you would remind me constantly."

So the two spent over an hour reviewing each other's notes so they would be prepared to demonstrate a spell in front of the professor today.

Rikku then asked, "Wait a minute, what kind of spell are we supposed to demonstrate today? I can't remember."

Paine rolled her eyes, "You mean you don't know?"

"Uh, nope!" Rikku grinned.

"You're hopeless."

"You say that, but you don't mean it."

"You have to be able to demonstrate a status changing spell on a partner."

"Oh man! You mean that was today! I thought that was on Friday!"

Rikku started flipping through her notes frantically to find a status changing spell. "Oh, there's one I know how to do!" She pointed out a simple haste spell.

Paine sighed, "A three year old could do that spell."

"I know, I know! But she didn't specify what kind of status spell it had to be! As long as it doesn't harm your partner was all she said, right?"

"It's your GPA, not mine." Paine finished her breakfast and pushed the tray away.

"Hey, what are you going to use?"

Paine just grabbed her bag and started walking away, "You'll see."

+++ Magical Arts Class, 11 A.M. +++

Rikku and Paine were both standing on the floor in front of the professor. The two were the last to demonstrate their ability for the day. Apparently, Lulu was giving the class a break today. If they were able to successfully cast a spell and have it's effect hold for at least 15 seconds, they could go. If not, they weren't allowed to leave until they could. So far, everyone had passed, so the class was now empty with the exception of the three women.

Rikku had gone first, and was happy when her haste spell worked without a hitch. "Very good Rikku. I'm glad to see your finally getting the hang of it. Now Paine, please show me what you have prepared."

So Paine took a single step toward Rikku and thrust her hand outward, uttering just one word.

"SILENCE!"

And much to Rikku's surprise, it worked. As she tried to say something, her voice got caught in her throat and stayed there. She frantically threw her arms in the air and waved them around while simultaneously stomping her feet on the ground. After a few seconds of doing this, she settled to simply crossing her arms and shooting Paine a death-glare.

"I could get used to this." Paine mused.

"Indeed." Lulu added, with a slight chuckle. Rikku responded by writing the word 'meanie' in big bold letters on the chalk board while waiting for the spells effect to wear off.

"And that's 15 seconds. You both pass. Great job." Lulu reached into her desk and pulled a small vial out of the drawer labeled "Echo Screen." She handed to Rikku, "Drink this. It'll clear the effect. Otherwise, you'll be mute for another 15 minutes."

Rikku obeyed, drinking the whole vial in one gulp. Within seconds, she felt normal again. "I hate you." She glared right at Paine.

Paine smirked, "Sticks and stones, Rikku." With that, she grabbed her stuff and casually walked out of the classroom.

Rikku just stood there and pouted for a few seconds. Lulu laughed a little and spoke, "Don't be so dramatic. She could have done worse."

"I don't see how." Rikku moaned.

"She could have paralyzed you." With that, Lulu grabbed her grade sheet and walked out. Rikku just shrugged.

"She's STILL a meanie." Rikku said out loud as she walked out of the class room.

+++ Rikku and Yuna's Dorm, 11:15 +++

"She cast a silence spell on me for her demonstration for Lulu!" Rikku exclaimed, dancing around the room as she did.

Yuna didn't even try to suppress the laugh, "She did! I wish I could cast that one. It might come in handy."

Rikku glared at her cousin, "You're not helping!"

Yuna smiled a little, "You want to know what I think? I think she really does like you."

"She has a weird way of showing it!"

"Usually people play jokes on their friends. Harmless ones, of course. That's pretty much what she did to you. But you have to admit, you get pretty talkative sometimes." Yuna began sorting through her drawer to organize it as she continued, "Besides, at least she was nice and waited until everyone was gone, so it's not like she embarrassed you in front of the entire class."

Rikku just stomped her feet in place, "That's beside the point! She could just ask me to be less talkative instead of casting a spell on me!"

Yuna was about to respond when there was a knock at the door. She got up and opened the door, only to see a woman dressed in all black that she didn't recognize. "Hello, may I help you?"

"Is Rikku in there somewhere?"

Rikku recognized the voice instantly. "You big meanie." She crossed her arms and faced the wall.

Yuna chuckled a little, "You must be Paine, then. Please come in. I'm Yuna, nice to meet you."

Paine nodded at her, "And you too." She stepped into the room and looked at Rikku, who was facing away from her. "You should have signed up for drama. You would have passed that class with ease."

Rikku turned her head and stuck her tongue out at her, "So are you gonna mute me again or did you need something?"

"I came to take you to lunch."

Rikku turned around completely and raised an eyebrow at her, "Beg your pardon."

Paine just repeated herself, "I came to take you to lunch. It's almost noon."

"Your not going to mute me, or paralyze me, or anything like that."

"No."

"Promise?"

Yuna gave Rikku a firm nudge in the side as she made her way into the bathroom to brush her hair. "Alright, fine! I'll go! Quit poking me already!"

As the two made their way to the door, Paine added, "Besides, if you don't talk my ear off the whole way there, I won't need to mute you."

Rikku just glared at the back of her head.

+++ Student Union, Noon +++

The two sat there and ate lunch together, in almost complete silence. Rikku was very cautious in case Paine had some surprise in store for her. She was so suspicious of her that Rikku's eyes never left Paine's.

"You can stop acting so paranoid. I'm not going to prank you." Paine said.

"Then why'd you bring me here?"

"I'm making it up to you."

Rikku about choked on one of her fries as she said that, "What!"

Paine just repeated herself, "I'm making up what I did to you."

Rikku smiled, "HA! I knew it!"

Paine raised an eyebrow, "Knew what?"

"Your just a big softie! You really do like me!"

"Don't hold your breath. If we're going to be study partners, then it won't do us any good if we're fighting each other." 

Before Rikku could respond, someone approached the table and spoke. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but I was wondering if you had a minute Rikku?"

The two looked up to see a crippled looking man standing there. His long hair, large glasses, and mechanical leg were a dead giveaway to who it was. "Oh, hey Nooj. What's up?"

Nooj smiled, "I hate to trouble you, but Gippal asked me to give you this." In his hand was a small envelope. Rikku was about to answer when Nooj cut her off, "Now, I know how you feel about him, which is why I've come to ask you this. As Gippal's friend, it is a courtesy to do him this favor and deliver this letter to you. But if you were to take this letter and make it disappear, then neither of us have anything to be ashamed of, now do we?"

Rikku thought about it for a minute and nodded, "Yea, I guess you're right." She took the envelope and placed it on her tray.

Nooj smiled, "I know how you feel about Gippal, and I'm sorry he keeps hassling you. I've tried to talk to him about it, but sometimes a friends words aren't enough." Nooj looked over at Paine, "Ah, you would be the new student, Paine I believe it was." Paine nodded. "Then allow me to welcome you to the University. I'm Nooj, the class vice-president."

"Thank you." Paine replied with a half nod.

"You're quite welcome. Now if you two ladies would excuse me, I have some business to attend to." With that, Nooj walked out of the cafeteria towards the courtyard.

Paine looked at Rikku, who was giving the letter a death glare. "What was that about?"

Rikku looked up in surprise, "What? You mean Nooj? He's just an old acquaintance of mine."

Paine raised an eyebrow. "Acquaintance?"

Rikku waved her hands in front of her briefly, "I know what your getting at. No he's not a love interest. Just a loose friends."

Paine eyed her critically, "I didn't mean that. What's this business about Gippal?"

Rikku just huffed, "Nooj is a good friend of Gippal. He usually stays very quiet and recluse. He's also a real braniac! He makes better grades than my cousin does, and believe me that's a feat in itself." Rikku took a big bite out of her cheeseburger before continuing, "Anyways, Nooj has always helped Gippal through school. Gippal likes to play to an audience, so he usually has poor attendance and grades in his classes. The only reason he's still in school and passing is because Nooj helps him so much. But when Gippal asks him to do something, Nooj usually does it."

Paine sighed, "Sounds like someone is being used."

Rikku nodded, "I've tried to tell him to stop, but Nooj always says that friends have to help friends out. I feel bad for him."

"To each his own." Paine said.

Rikku made a vomiting motion as she looked at the envelope and threw it into the nearest trash can. Paine raised an eyebrow at her, "Isn't it common courtesy to read a letter before you throw it away?"

Rikku just waved her hand, "Trust me, I already know what it says." Rikku stood up and did her best impersonation of Gippal, complete with placing both hands on her hips and standing on one foot like he did when he was posing, "As class president, I present to you the invitation of being my first lady at the prom coming up in 3 months time. Please respond ASAP to reserve you spot at my side." With that, she sat back down.

Paine looked at her, "I take it you don't like Gippal then?"

Rikku shook her head, "Not now, not before, and not ever! All that man does is try to get me to sleep with him. And no matter how many times I say no, it doesn't get through that weird haircut of his!"

Paine looked at Rikku, "Didn't Nooj say something about him telling Gippal that you weren't interested?"

Rikku just shrugged, "Nothing I say works, nothing he says works. Gippal's a determined individual, I can't deny that."

"I know all about that..." Paine muttered quietly.

"Know all about what?"

Paine suddenly looked up in surprise, "Oh, uh, nothing." She got up and started to leave, "Meet me at the track at 6. Don't be late." With that, she took off rather quickly.

Rikku just watched her leave with a perplexed expression on her face. _"What was that all about?_"

+++ Athletics Track, just before 6 +++

When Paine had mentioned not to be late, Rikku halfway wondered if she were talking about herself or not. Rikku was early, but Paine was no where to be found. She tapped her foot impatiently, mentally making a list of all the things she COULD be doing right about then. Her list had grown to be about 20 items long when a familiar voice broke through.

"So you can be punctual. Good thing I didn't bet any money." Paine walked up wearing a black sports bra and sweatpants.

"Where's the faith?" Rikku said, putting her gym bag down. "So what did you have planned that'll help me in class?"

"It's simple. Your problem isn't that you can't defend yourself or evade. Your problem is that you exert too much energy to do something simple. You get tired too quickly."

Rikku eyed her inquisitively, "Okay. So how am I supposed to fix that."

Paine just looked her in the eye, "Easy. You just need to build up your endurance."

"So, how do I do that?"

"Running laps."

Rikku groaned and hunched over, "I hate running laps."

"That's because you don't do it enough. Not quit your complaining and do some warm-ups."

So as the two started stretching out in preparation for their run, Rikku remembered how Paine had run out of the cafeteria in a hurry earlier. "So, you never did tell me why you took off so quick out of the cafeteria."

"No reason."

"And what was that about 'knowing what I was talking about'?"

"It was nothing."

"Ah, come on! You can tell me! I won't tell anyone if it's a secret!"

"Just drop it."

Rikku just stuck her tongue out at her and stood back up. "Fine."

Paine got herself in a running position before speaking, "Since this is the first time your doing this, we'll start off light. We'll just do 5 laps, then you can work up from their."

"Well, how many can you run at one time?"

"My best record was 15."

So the two took off around the track. The track measured a quarter mile all the way around, so the distance they were running was equivalent to a one and one quarter mile stretch. Rikku managed to get through the first two fine, but started struggling on the third one. Paine, on the other hand, just kept going. She even passed Rikku at one point, making her one lap ahead.

"Pick up the pace." Paine had commanded as she passed by. Rikku responded with a rude gesture from her hand.

Rikku heaved and jogged along until she finally managed to finish all 5 laps. Much to her surprise, Paine was waiting for her at the end. While Rikku was sweating bullets and panting heavily, Paine looked totally unfazed.

"Well, you finished all 5. That's an accomplishment in itself." She tossed a water bottle at her, which Rikku barely was able to catch.

"So, is that it, or did you have something else planned?" Rikku asked, hunched over and panting between almost every word.

"Well, just some advice really. Part of your problem in defense class is that you get overconfident and complacent."

"I get what?"

"Remember when you managed to throw me down the first time? You didn't think to make sure I couldn't strike back at you. That's how I got you. Then when you got me the second time, you didn't expect me to counter attack when I stood back up. You should expect anything all the time."

"Well how was I supposed to know that you would counter?"

"You didn't, which was the point. If you expected it, you would have been prepared." To make her point, she waited until Rikku looked down to catch her breath again and tackled her onto the ground. She then got up and shook her head. "Like so."

"Owie!" Rikku said. "What did you do that for?"

"To prove my point. If you were expecting it, or suspected that I might attack, you would have sidestepped me." Paine helped Rikku up off the ground, then noticed that Rikku had scraped her elbow on the way down. "Did you hurt yourself on the way down?"

Rikku looked down at it and shrugged, "It's not a big deal. It'll heal quick."

"Better let me take a look at it."

"Why? It's just a little scrape! I can hardly feel it!"

"True, but you need to clean it up. Besides, you got it because I tackled you." Paine walked over to her gym back and pulled out a gauze pad and some Neosporin. She then proceeded to pour some of her water out of her water bottle onto the wound to wash it out, then began putting the Neosporin on it.

"Well, thank you Dr. P!"

Paine gave her a cold look, "Stop that." She the began putting the gauze pad on it.

"I think that's going to be your new nickname, Paine!"

Paine finished putting the gauze pad on the wound, "No it's not."

"Yes it is." Rikku smiled.

"Minus 5 then."

"5 what?"

"Respect points."

"Wait, when did those come in?"

"You want to be friends, then you need to be respectful, just as I'm respectful to you. So you lose 5 points."

"Well, how many do I have left?"

Paine scratched her chin for a second, "45."

Rikku suddenly looked worried, "Oh, that's a low number."

Paine just waved her on, "Alright, we're done for the night. Meet me here again tomorrow and we'll do it again. Good night."

Rikku followed her up until they got to the dorms. "Hey Paine."

"Yes?"

"Will you tell me why you left the cafeteria so suddenly tomorrow?"

Paine just rolled her eyes as she walked back into her room, "That's 44." She closed the door before Rikku could respond.


	5. Minor Slips break Major Walls

A/N: I'm pretty certain I don't need to say 'I don't own anything' at the beginning of every chapter, but whatever. I don't own anything. Square Enix is making all the money and laughing at my fictions.

**Chapter 5**

**Minor Slips Break Major Walls**

"I still don't understand why she has to be so secretive about everything." Rikku whined. She had gotten up early that morning with her cousin and briefly told her of what happened at the track the previous afternoon.

Yuna just shrugged, "Maybe that's just her way of doing things. She might just be insecure, you know. That could be her way of asking you to hold back a little bit while she gets used to you."

Rikku stamped her feet in place for a moment, "Hasn't she just heard of asking! I'm not deaf ya know!"

Yuna just giggled, "Well, Rikku, you have to admit, you can take some getting used to. And you don't always get the message when people tell you. Maybe this is her little way of telling you."

"But come on! Respect point? That's just plain mean! And just who's side are you on, anyways?" Rikku huffed.

"No ones. I'm just giving you a little advice. You came to me and asked, remember." Yuna took a minute to look at the clock. "Look, I'm meeting a friend of mine before class. Just give Paine some space and she'll open up." Yuna waved at her cousin as she darted out the door.

Rikku just threw open her history notes and started studying for history class for a few hours.

Student Union, Noon +++

Having studied until her eyes were sore, Rikku had decided to go to the cafeteria for lunch. Studying for her was hard. Studying on an empty stomach was practically impossible. As was usual, the cafeteria was almost loaded to the gills with people eating and studying. Normally, Rikku would be in here a half hour before noon to avoid the rush, but she'd lost track of time while studying. On the bright side, she didn't have class for another 3 hours. So at least there was no rush to get through the line and eat.

As she made her way to the lunch line, she was amazed at how small it was. Usually it was snaking it's way to the other side of the building. So she took her place at the back of the line. She'd been there for no more than 2 minutes when a familiar voice appeared behind her.

"I must not have worked you hard enough yesterday if your up at a decent hour." Paine stood behind her with her arms crossed over her chest. Like usual.

Rikku about jumped out of her skin, "Don't sneak up on me like that! You about gave me a heart attack!"

"Now that would be an improvement." Paine muttered.

Rikku just glared at her. "So does letting you sneak up on me get me respect points?"

Paine scratched her chin for a minute, "No."

Rikku just pouted, but then had and idea. "Well, what if I bought you lunch."

"Depends on what you get me."

Rikku gave her a quizzical look, "Well, are you going to tell me what you want?"

"No."

"Your not helping me!"

"You want respect points, you got to earn them."

"Oh, fine!"

So as the two finally got to order, Rikku bought them both club sandwiches. And as the two sat down to eat, it seems she had picked well.

"Your back to 48."

Rikku bounced in her seat, clapping her hands together.

The two spent the next hour reviewing for class. Issaru had a test prepared apparently. It was one of those 'fail this and you lose one quarter of your grade' type tests too.

"Do you think we'll do alright on this test?" Rikku asked, taking a big gulp out of her soda.

"I'd be more worried about you than me. I'll be fine." Paine said, packing her things up.

"Any advice before we take the test, miss history whizz."

"Yes. Stay awake. It'll double your odds of actually passing." With that, Paine got up and walked off.

Rikku shot her a death glare until she couldn't see her anymore.

Professor Issaru's history class, 3 PM +++

No sooner had Issaru walked into the room did the test papers begin getting handed out. Before everyone was allowed to start, he went through his usual long speech about the importance of this test.

"Now remember everyone. This test is important, as it will have an extremely detrimental effect on your grade if you were to score poorly on it. You will be given the entire class time to complete your test. Bring your papers to the front desk when you are done. You may leave when I have your test paper." With that, everyone began.

Rikku heard several people around the room groaning as they took their test. They, more than likely, hadn't studied quite as much as they thought they had. She was amazed, however, at how much she had retained. "_Wow! Paine really is a good teacher!_" Rikku blazed right through almost all of the 150 question test. A few had stopped her momentarily, but it took her just under an hour to complete the exam.

She almost smiled when Issaru gave her a quizzical look as she approached his table. "Did you finish already?" He asked her.

Rikku just nodded. He shrugged and pointed to a small stack of papers that other students had already turned in. She placed the test face down on top and strode out of the room, a huge smile on her face. She stopped dead in her tracks when she saw Paine outside. "_Is she waiting for me?_"

"Done already?" Paine looked her over.

"Yup! I actually knew the answers!"

"That remains to be seen." Paine started walking down the hall, Rikku tailing behind her.

The two made their way down the halls back towards the dormitories. Rikku acted like her normal self, and was a chatterbox the whole time. Paine on the other hand stuck to one syllable responses.

"So do you think the blitzball team will make it to th...OH CRAP!" Rikku stopped and turned on her heel, trying to yank Paine with her.

Paine brushed her off, "What's the matter?"

Rikku frantically pointed down the corridor at Gippal, who was standing in front of several lockers, talking with Nooj. "Because I don't want him to..."

"Well, well! Afternoon ladies." Gippal started striding toward the pair.

Rikku just sighed and slumped over, "...see me."

Gippal walked up to Paine and examined her for a moment, "So, you must be the new transfer." He scratched his chin for a moment before Nooj jumped in.

"Her name is Paine, Gippal." Nooj let out a very subtle sigh.

"Yea, Paine! So what are you doing with my little pumpkin over there?"

Rikku made a very audible gagging noise, "I'd rather sleep on a bed of nails!"

Paine raised an eyebrow at Gippal, "Charming. I'm walking her to her dorm. It's not very far from mine. Any other questions?"

Gippal placed both his hands on his hips and spoke, but this time he leaned a little so he could look at Rikku, "Just one. Did you get that note I sent you?"

Rikku narrowed her eyes at him, "I did. But the funny thing is, my cousin mistook it for junk mail and tossed it in the shredder." Nooj smiled and made a small thumbs up from behind Gippal.

Gippal just shrugged, "Accidents happen. Just remember, the invitation is still open. Now, can I escort you two ladies to your rooms. It would be a shame for a president to let his students wander without an escort."

Rikku was about to speak when Paine stepped in, "Tempting offer. But I think I'd rather be violated by a tonberry then have you as my escort. Come on Rikku." Paine just casually strolled by, with Rikku tagging behind, but not before sticking her tongue out at Gippal as she walked by. Rikku heard the two speak as they left.

Gippal scratched his head. "I don't get it Nooj. Every other lady in this school wants me."

Nooj replied very casually, "Some advice Gippal. If you have caring, quality women after you, then your a ladies man. When every women in the school is after you for just one night, then it makes you a man whore. Now come on, you'll be late for class." With that, the two marched off down the hall in the opposite direction.

"Thanks Paine." Rikku said.

"For what?"

"For getting that low-life to go away."

Paine just ran her hand through her hair. "He's a waste of oxygen."

"You have no idea. Sometimes I wish he'd get expelled or something, just so I don't have to worry about him chasing after me constantly."

"You should just hit him, then."

"No, that would be bad. He's the president after all. I don't need to be getting expelled for that. Besides, that might make him come after me even more."

"Then just try to avoid him then." Paine cracked her neck, "Besides, he's not right for you anyways."

Rikku stopped, "Well, who do you think is right for me?"

"I don't know. Someone besides him."

"Do I detect a hint of jealousy in that tone?"

"No."

"Well you started this! Who do you think would be right for me?" Rikku stood there looking at her with her hands on her hips.

Paine made a quick break into her dorm without responding to that. But as she entered, Rikku swore she saw her blush just a little bit before the door shut. Rikku just stood there with a puzzled expression on her face.

"_What was that about anyways?_"

+++ Yuna and Rikku's Dorm, a few minutes later +++

Yuna was still out and about doing whatever it was that she did when she wasn't at class. Rikku guessed she was probably stalking Tidus somewhere near the gym, trying to work up the courage to talk to him. She shook her head thinking about it. As much as Rikku loved her cousin, she was hopeless at the whole love thing.

The absence of her cousin left Rikku doing less talking and more thinking, a feat worthy of a medal at times. What Paine had said, and how she had left very suddenly was odd to Rikku. Granted, Paine was an emotional brick wall who didn't say much, but that made what she had said and done all the more odder. What was stranger was this feeling that Rikku had that she'd never had before. It was an odd thing for sure.

Was it a feeling of liking? Real liking? The word was a bit too steep for her to consider, but it was definitely odd. What Paine had said was still echoing in her head, and she still was positive that she had blushed as she retreated to her dorm. What was it she was trying to hide?

Yuna stumbling into the room broke Rikku of her deep thought. "Sorry, I was busy with some unexpected things that came up." Yuna said, dropping her bag on the ground and sitting on her bed.

Rikku smiled, "Stalking the blitzball captain wasn't one of those things, now was it?"

Yuna just blushed, her entire face going red. Rikku sighed, "Look, eventually your gonna have to suck it up and go and talk to him."

"But I'm such a nerd. Why would he want to talk to me? There are dozens of girls always around him who are way better looking than me."

"Well, don't bash it until you try it. That's what pops always told me." Rikku stretched for a moment, "Besides, if you don't do it, I might give him a forged note from you and force you too."

Yuna gave her a cold stare, "You'd better not! And just to make sure you don't, I'll go and talk to him right now!" Yuna nervously got up and looked at her bag, "Um, just as soon as I'm done with my homework."

Rikku sighed, "Your pathetic, you know that?"

Yuna moved into the desk and started unpacking her things when she noticed that Rikku was staring at the floor with a solemn expression on her face. "Are you okay?"

Rikku shot up in surprise and scratched the back of her head, "Just fine! Nothing's wrong! I was just looking at the, uh, dirt on the carpet! Maybe I need to vacuum!" Rikku got up and moved toward the closet.

"Rikku, sit back down in that chair and tell me what's wrong." Yuna said while she began to read, sounding scarily like a mother.

Rikku stopped dead in her tracks and sat back down, "Am I that obvious."

"You only look like that when one of two things happen. Either, A, you've been given some heartbreaking news, or B, when Cid takes away your candy. I'm guessing it's not option B, so what's the bad news."

"It's actually not bad news. It's something that I'm not sure of."

Yuna put her book down and looked at her cousin, "Oh, well what's up?"

Rikku looked at her cousin nervously, "What's it like to like someone? Like, really like someone?"

"You mean beyond a platonic relationship?"

"Yes."

Yuna smiled, "Oh, you mean you found someone finally?"

"Well, not exactly. It's like this, every time I'm around them, they tease me and don't say much, but when they let little slips out, they try to cover it up and get away from me. Does that mean they don't like me, or do they like me a lot and are trying to hide it."

Yuna thought about it for a minute, "Well, it probably means they do like you a lot. How do you feel about them?"

"That's the strange thing. I don't really know. Today, they helped me get away from Gippal. And it got me thinking. But I don't know if what I feel is love, or affection, or whatever it is!" Rikku grabbed her head and shook it side to side, "Oh, why does this have to be so complicated?"

Yuna tapped her forehead for a minute, then snapped her fingers together. "Maybe you should go talk to them! Tell them how they feel! If they are your friend, they won't be afraid to tell you how they feel about you back. It'll also avoid confusion."

Rikku got up and slammed her fist into her open palm, "Your right! I'll do that!" Rikku began walking out of the dorm, but before she walked out, she called out to her cousin, "And you better tell Tidus, or I'll start writing that note."

Yuna's cheeks went beet red, "You had better not or so help me, you'll...you'll...I'LL GET YOU SOMEHOW!"

+++ Athletics Track, 6:30 PM +++

Just like the previous evening, Paine set about having Rikku run laps. Fortunately, she still only expected 5 laps. Unfortunately, they weren't any easier than yesterday. As Rikku finished her last lap, she hunched over to catch her breath as Paine watched over her.

"I thought you said these were supposed to get easier." Rikku huffed.

"They will. But not over the course of two days. If you keep at it every day it, it'll get easier." Paine said as she tossed Rikku a water bottle.

Rikku grabbed it, then stepped to the side as Paine suddenly charged at her for a tackle. As Paine past her, Rikku stuck her foot out and tripped her, sending Paine face first into the grass.

"Well, at least your learning." Paine said as she rose up and brushed herself off.

"You'll have to do better than that Paine! I'm ready for you now!" Rikku smirked, doing a small victory dance.

"Confident, aren't we? Don't get cocky, you might get hurt." Paine responded, which did nothing to break Rikku of her dance. "So what's the real deal with Gippal?"

Paine's sudden question broke Rikku from her happy dance and startled her. "Uh, what do you mean?"

"There has to be a reason he's chasing after you."

"I don't know. Maybe he thinks I'm hot?" Rikku responded, putting a finget on her chin and looking up.

"And I imagine he thinks the same thing of the pack of cheerleaders who are always swarming him. Did you do something to get him interested in you?"

"Uh, nothing I can think of? Why, do you think that has something to do with it?"

Paine shrugged, "With some men, you never know."

Rikku began stamping her feet on the ground, "Hey, wait a second! Why do you want to know?"

"Because I can help you ditch him easier if I know."

"Well, the only thing I can thing of is when I was back in high school. I used to flirt a little bit with different boys. I might have done it with him once. I don't really remember. Gippal was a nobody back then."

"You think that's it?"

Rikku shrugged, "You never know. One little thing I might have done a few years back, and now I'm paying for it. But why do you want to help me get rid of him? He's not bothering you."

"No, he's not. But he's bothering you."

"So?"

"So a friend would help their friend get rid of someone who's bothering them. Besides, I don't like him. He's too much of a show-off."

"Are you sure that's all it is?" Rikku asked, with a hint of suspicion in her voice.

Paine raised an eyebrow at her, "What are you talking about?"

Rikku started rocking back and forth on her heels, "Well, you keep wanting to help me get rid of him. Are you just trying to get rid of competition?"

Paine shot Rikku a death glare, "I think all that sugar you eat is getting to your head."

Rikku moved closer to Paine and looked her in the eye, "Awww, come on Paine. If there's something you want to tell me, just say it!"

"Just drop it." 

"No! Come on, I've been honest with you!"

"Look, you're my friend. Nothing more, nothing less. I'm helping you because that's what friends do. Don't read too much into it."

Rikku just kept looking at her inquisitively, "Well, if there's nothing to it, why are you getting all defensive suddenly."

"I am not getting defensive! This is just not a good place to tell you how I really feel about y-" Paine suddenly clamped her mouth shut. Her eyes darted from side to side and her face went beet red.

Rikku looked at her in complete astonishment. For a few seconds, she was confused as to what was happening. "Uh, Paine? You okay? What were you trying to say?"

Paine didn't say anything. She turned in the opposite direction and darted. Rikku tried to call out to her, but she didn't even turn around. Rikku just stood there in complete disbelief. For some reason, she felt bad for Paine, but she wasn't sure why.

But there was also another feeling. It was a feeling of hurt. From what Rikku could tell, Paine was about to say something that she had been keeping bottled up inside, and it hurt Rikku that she wouldn't tell her. "_Aren't I your friend, Paine? And this wasn't a good place to tell me how you really feel about..._"

Was Paine about to share her true feelings? She wasn't sure, and it was the lack of knowing that made her hurt the most. Was her feelings about Rikku, or about someone else? Rikku very slowly made her way to her dorm as she pondered all these thoughts to herself.

Ending note: I hope I'm not moving this whole falling in love thing along too slowly for you all. It'll pick up some in the next chapter. I promise :).


	6. Opposites Attract

A/N: I would like to thank all of you for the positive feedback I've been getting on this fiction so far. I was afraid you would all start sharpening the pikes for my head. I'll continue to put my best effort into each chapter to make it a fun read for you all.

But I think it's time we got the ball running on this, don't you. I hope you all enjoy this chapter.

**Chapter 6**

**Opposites Attract**

Rikku was staring at the ceiling as the alarm clock next to her began blaring it's alarm. She rolled over and looked at it. 6:30 A.M. She didn't get a wink of whole sleep the whole night. All she could think about was what had happened the previous evening. The entire event replayed over and over again in her head like a broken record. She had replayed it so many times that she was absolutely positive that Paine was about to tell her about how she truly felt about her.

But the question that burned in the back of the blonde's head was just how deep did Paine's feelings run? Was Paine just a really good friends, or something more? And if she was something more, how did that make Rikku feel? Back in Bikanel, it wasn't uncommon for people to date other people of the same gender. Usually, it was more common in females, but most of the time it never worked out. Most attributed it to 'experimentation'. Personally, Rikku had never found herself attracted to another woman, and had never really considered that as a possibility. But she also had never really found herself attracted to a man before either. Physical attraction was just something she never really paid any attention too.

Though that strange feeling she had had yesterday afternoon after Paine chased off Gippal had come back as she thought about Paine. Was this feeling a feeling of desire she felt? It was all so much to take in that it made her head spin. "_God, why does this have to be so complicated?_" Rikku put her head in her hands for a minute as she sat down in front of the desk. For the first time in her life, she had a feeling of being completely lost. She had never had a problem finding out what to do when life threw it's little curve balls at her.

When she got her first F on a report card, she just apologized to her father profusely and studied harder. When she had to shop for a present for Yuna or Cid for their birthday or Christmas, she had no problem finding them a present that was just right. When she graduated from high school, she had no problem getting accepted into UCL. But this matter was something different. She was at a total loss of what to do.

"Good lord, Rikku! You look like a mess. Did you get any sleep at all last night?" Yuna had just then woke up, seeing Rikku sitting in a chair.

"What do you mean?" Rikku responded groggily.

"You didn't say a single thing to me when you came back yesterday. You just got changed and went to bed. I was up for almost an hour after that and all I heard was you tossing and turning while muttering something under your breath. Is something up?" Yuna pulled up a chair and sat down in front of her cousin.

"Well, I did what you suggested I do yesterday, and things didn't go like I had hoped. When I asked them about their feelings, they started to tell me, but then stopped and ran away."

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. Did it make you feel bad?"

"A little. I kept replaying the whole thing in my head all night, but I can't figure out what happened. Do you think I did something wrong?"

Yuna shrugged, "I don't know. Were you too pushy?"

Rikku racked her brain for a moment, "Well, I don't think I was. I just told them that if they had something they needed to tell me, they could just come out with it. Then they started to say something and took off without finishing it." A small tear fell down the blonde's face, "I hope I didn't scare them off."

"Maybe you should try to find them. If you need to, just tell them your sorry if you were too pushy and that they could tell you when they feel ready."

Rikku dried her eyes, "You're right. I guess I need to get ready for class too. Moping around here won't do me any good anyways."

Yuna smiled, "There ya go. But get some caffeine in your system before you go. You look like a zombie."

Rikku responded by zombie walking into the bathroom, making small moaning noises as she went. The resulting explosion of laughter from both the women made Rikku forget about the whole thing for the time being.

+++ Professor Dona's Algebra Classroom, 7:30 A.M. +++

Having had a cup of coffee, a bottle of Mountain Dew, three donuts, and puff pastry and a bagel, Rikku slid into her seat in class right on time. Anyone who took a look at her wouldn't even notice that she hadn't slept a wink last night. She was her usual bubbly, cheerful self by the time class started.

Though as class started, her cheeriness dimmed and turned to worry when Paine didn't show up for class. As Rikku jotted down notes and formulas from the blackboard at the front of the room, she would stealthily take small scans of the room with her eyes to search for the silver haired woman. But no matter how many times she looked, she couldn't find her. This made all of mixed feelings emerge slightly. Was Paine hiding from her?

"And that is the lecture for this morning class. Does anyone have any questions before I dismiss you all?" The entire classroom was silent, no hands raised anywhere. "Very well then, you may all leave. Be prepared for a quiz on Monday. Have a good weekend."

As people began to leave the classroom, Rikku had an idea. She decided to ask Professor Dona what happened to Paine. Maybe Paine just had a major test coming up and she couldn't make it to math class this morning. At least, that's what Rikku hoped.

"Excuse me, Professor, but I was wondering if you knew what happened to Paine?"

Dona looked up from her desk, "Oh, yes, it was most peculiar. She had sent me an email this morning telling me she had come down with something and wouldn't be able to make it to class. Did she not tell you?"

"No she didn't. Would you like me to bring her today's notes then? She'll need them if she wants to pass the quiz on Monday."

"No, it won't be necessary. She asked me if I could send them to her, so I did. It was rather sudden, but she has a perfect attendance record so I didn't see the harm in helping her this one time. We can't control when we get sick after all, now can we?"

Rikku put on her biggest smile possible, "No, I guess we can't. Thank you." Dona waved her goodbye as she moved into the hallway, doing her absolute best not to cry. Something was fishy about this, and Rikku was going to get to the bottom of it.

+++ Student Union, 9:00 A.M. +++

Rikku had to do her best to not look sad in front of her cousin as she approached the table they usually sat at. She had decided to go to Paine's dorm room and see if she was okay. Paine WAS human, so it was entirely possible that she really was sick and Rikku was just blowing everything way out of proportions. But that idea went down faster than a Guado stranded on Mt. Gagazet.

When Rikku got to Paine's dorm, there was no answer when she knocked on the door. She tried three times, and she couldn't ever hear movement from inside. So she tried to open the door, which turned out to be no good. It was locked. Either Paine was really good at not making any sounds while she was inside there, or she wasn't in her dorm room. "_She seems to stay pretty active for someone who just this morning got sick._" Rikku had thought this to herself as she slumped into the seat in front of her cousin.

To make things worse, Rikku wasn't too good at faking happiness when she needed it most. "I'm going to assume that the long face is due to the fact that you haven't been able to find your secret admirer at all today. Am I right?" Yuna looked at her cousin, waiting for a response.

Rikku shuffled her feet a little while she sat, "They're sick apparently. They weren't in class, and they weren't in their dorm. I mean, did I really scare them away, or are they playing really, really, REALLY hard to get?"

Yuna just shrugged, "Give them a day. If they have something to say that is really important to them, they may not be able to just tell you on the fly. You never know, they might be planning and practicing what they're going to say to you right now. Just give it time. I know you hate to wait, but sometimes that's just the way things work out."

Yuna's words cheered Rikku up a little, "Yea, I guess you're right. You think they'll come to me when their ready?"

"Of course they will. Though how they might tell you that they're ready is not something you'll know in advance. Just be patient. And when they finally do tell you, be supportive of them."

Rikku gave her cousin a huge smile, "Thanks, Yunie! Your a big help. Too bad you can't pracice what your preach!"

Yuna just pulled the book she was beginning to read closer to her face and pretended not to hear her cousin talking.

+++ Magical Arts Class, 10:30 A.M. +++

Rikku entered the magical arts class and took a head count as soon as Lulu entered the class. Sure enough, the class was Paine-less (no pun intended). This fact was reinforced when Lulu began calling role.

"And I see Paine is absent. But she sent me an email in advance, so she'll not be marked." Lulu had a tendency to make comments such as this aloud so the entire class could hear. Rikku often wondered if she did it to make a point to the class, the point being that you can be absent so long as you give notice and you won't lose points. Nevertheless, it confirmed what Rikku had suspected. Paine was indeed hiding from her.

"_Whatever it is she has to say had better be worth all this wait. I HATE being patient._" Class began at it's usual pace. First came lectures, then came spell analysis, and finally came the hands-on part. On the bright side, it seemed they were practicing paralysis spells today. To make it all the more fun, Lulu had some live fiends brought in off the Mi'hen highroad.

The class seemed to be having a blast too. Rikku seemed to have an uncanny talent at paralysis magic. Even Lulu was impressed. "Well Rikku, you may make a fairly good thief if you can paralyze creatures and other people this well." To make it more amusing, some of the students even took to tipping over the fiends as soon as they were rendered immobile. Within ten minutes, the entire class had developed the art of Fiend Tipping.

Lulu was content enough to allow them to have their fun until the end class, in which she asked that the fiends be returned to their cages before they unfroze. The class obeyed, and filtered out of the room, chanting "TIP! TIP! TIP!" as they moved down the hall.

Rikku had stayed behind, however. "Excuse me, professor, but I had a question."

Lulu stood and began to erase the blackboard as she spoke, "About Paine, I presume?"

"Am I that obvious?"

"It's only natural that you should ask. She is your friend and study partner, correct?" Rikku nodded her head in a yes fashion, "Well, I will tell what you know. She sent me an email saying that she would be sick and asked if it were to be possible to have notes sent to her. I agreed. But she did more than email."

Rikku perked up, "Wait, what do you mean, 'did more than just email?' Did she come in here and see you personally?"

"She did. All she told me was that she was having a personal issue and was wondering if it were to be possible to not come to this class today. She didn't say anything about the problem she was having, but I presume that it does have something to do with you." Rikku was about to speak but Lulu raised her hand to stop her, "Let me finish. I sure that it may be that she has something on her mind that she feels she needs to say to you, but the words elude her. You may have noticed that she does not have very fluent social skills."

"You can say that again." Rikku muttered.

Lulu smiled, "She more than likely did not want to come into this class today because she knew that you would confront her and force her to tell you whatever it was that was on her mind before she could properly prepare."

Rikku hunched her shoulders over, "As much as I hate to admit it, you're probably right."

"My advice would be to wait. She'll come to you when she's ready."

Rikku huffed and stamped her feet, "Oh, you sound just like my cousin!"

Lulu laughed, "Then your cousin is a very wise woman. Now was there anything else you needed?"

"No, I'm good. Thank you professor!" Rikku strode out of the room, feeling much better than when she entered.

The new question that burned in her mind though was how long she would have to wait. And how would Paine tell her she was ready? "_Solve one problem, inherit ten more. Why can't she just come out and tell me?"_ Her thought process was interrupted when she practically knocked over another student.

"Ohmygosh, I am SO sorry! Let me help you!" Rikku frantically helped the man up, finally noticing that is was Nooj.

"You know, it's considered impolite to knock over a cripple." Nooj gave her a little smile as she helped him back up.

"Hehe, sorry about that. I was kinda distracted." She picked up his cane and books and handed them all back to him.

"It's actually quite fortunate that I bumped into you, or you bumped into me. I have a note to give you, and for a change it's not from Gippal." Nooj handed Rikku a plain white envelope that had her name on the front of it.

Rikku eyed it curiously, "Who's it from?"

"That's the odd thing. I found it underneath the door to my dorm this morning with a note attached to it that simply said give this to Rikku. There was no name or anything on the note."

Rikku shook it for a second, then held it close to her ear. Nooj laughed, "I doubt it's a bomb. But you should probably read this one. You may regret not doing so. Anyway, I must go. I have some business to attend to for the Student Government Association. Have a good day, Rikku."

"Bye, Nooj. Thanks for the note." Rikku waved to him as he set off down the hallway. She eyed to envelope curiously for a few moments before finally giving in to her curiosity. The note that was inside the envelope was typed and printed by a computer, so Rikku couldn't tell who had written it. And there was still no name to be found anywhere. The note itself was rather unremarkable. Written on it was a simple message.

Get online and enter the chatroom labeled "Private Meeting 768" at 8:00 this evening

Use the password "Questions" to get in

Don't be late

Rikku read over it again and again, even holding it up to a light to check for hidden writing, but saw nothing. She sighed and decided to do as it asked, hoping it might be something good. "_I just hope I don't live to regret this._"

+++ Yuna and Rikku's Dorm Room, just before 8 P.M. +++

Rikku watched as her instant messaging service began to scan all the available chatrooms that were currently active. She glanced over at the clock on the dresser, only to be greeted by a glowing 7:58 P.M. "_Two more minutes._" The excitement was killing her. Since she had gotten the note, she had been debating on rather or not to get online and do as the note asked. After all, there was no name as to who sent it, there was no indication as to what this person wants, and furthermore, it was a Friday night. Usually by this time, Rikku was out in the city hitting the movies or something. The last thing she wanted to be doing at this very moment was sitting in an online lobby waiting for a chatroom to open up.

7:59. "_Oh god! The suspense is killing me! Just get online already whoever you are!_" Rikku sat there and tapped her fingers on the desk until the clock on the dresser finally hit 8. Just as soon as it did, there was a small message that popped up on the lower right hand corner of the screen. It read, "You have been invited to enter the chatroom 'Private Meeting 768.' Will you accept invitation?"

Rikku hovered her mouse pointer over the yes button for a few seconds as she pondered what to do, but finally clicked the yes button. A new window then appeared that said, "Please enter your Student Identification number and access password." Every student on the campus had their own little identification number that was used as a screen name for the school only chatrooms. Apparently, this chatroom was only available to students at the university and to those who knew the password.

Rikku quickly typed in her number and entered the word 'Questions' into the password box. The prompt window faded for a moment before a message saying, "Password correct!" appeared. A moment later, she was in the room. And Rikku wasted no time in finding out whoever the person who sent the note was.

Rikku: Okay, look! I don't know who you are, but I want to know what the deal with the note is.

Rikku waited for a minute, but there was no answer. So she tried again.

Rikku: Just who are you anyways? What's so important that you couldn't tell me to my face?

When she did finally get her answer, she about fell out of her chair.

Paine: You ask too many questions, you know that?

Rikku: Paine! Where are you? What's going on? What's the deal with the note?

Paine: Meet me at the roof of the dormitory in 10 minutes and I'll tell you everything.

Rikku: Including why you suddenly took off like you did yesterday, then not appearing in class?

Paine: That would be included in the 'everything.'

Rikku: Okay, I'll be there.

As she entered this last sentence, a message appeared that said " User 'Paine' has left the chatroom." Rikku's frustration finally hit the boiling point.

"WHY DOES THIS HAVE TO BE SO HARD!?"

+++ Dormitory Building Roof, 5 minutes later +++

The roof of the dorm was open to the students at all hours, provided that there was nothing illegal going on. Scattered across the top of it was small chairs and tables that students often used to study outdoors. At least, so long as it didn't rain. During the day, the roof offered a fairly good view of Luca's southern side. One could even see down to the docks. But during the night, when all of the city's lights were on, the view was absolutely breathtaking.

The sun had just begun to set beneath the horizon as Rikku exited the stairwell and stepped out onto the roof. She darted her eyes from left to right searching for any sign of Paine, but found none. In fact, she couldn't see anyone at all on the roof. Being a Friday night, everyone was probably down in the city at one of the bars or nightclubs having a good time. Which left the roof top empty.

For some reason, this whole thing was slightly unsettling to Rikku. Part of her had this urge to turn the other direction, run as fast as she could down stairs, enter her dorm, lock the door, and go to sleep and pretend none of this happened, mainly because there was no one on the roof. But the other part wanted to give Paine her chance. The two of them were friends, and if Paine was going to finally say what was on her mind, Rikku wanted to be there for her.

The roof top lights finally began to turn on, illuminating the entire roof top in a dim glowing light. It provided enough illumination to be able to see people, but not necessarily their faces. And that's when she saw her.

Paine was standing beneath one of the lights near the entrance to the other stairwell. As Rikku started walking towards her, she got a good glimpse of Paine's face. There were tear streaks running all down her face like she'd been crying for quite some time. Though as she spoke, her voice didn't betray a single hint of cracking.

"I imagine you have lots of questions for me right now."

All the initial frustration and apprehension that Rikku had felt on the way up melted at that moment. "Well, yea. Why were you hiding from me all day?"

"Because I didn't want you to see me in this state. At least not until I was ready."

"For what though? What did you almost say last night that scared you so much.?"

Paine drew a small handkerchief from her back pocket and wiped her face with it for a moment. "Before I begin, you have to understand something. I was raised to believe that showing emotion in front of people was a sign of weakness. Especially in front of those you consider friends. I ran because it's been an instinct I've had for years now. If I start to show emotion, or betray what I'm thinking, I run. I've been hating myself for that all day now."

"You haven't been in your dorm room all day, have you?" Rikku asked in almost a whisper.

"No, I knew you would look for me there when I didn't show up for classes. So I was in the city all day." Paine nervously ran her hand through her hair before she continued, "I used to go to Bevelle University. I transferred because everywhere I went, the class president over there chased me all over the place, sort of like what Gippal does to you. I was trying to help you ditch him because I know how much of a pain it is when they don't take no for an answer."

"Was that the only reason you transferred here?"

"Yes, actually. You have to understand that the class president over there is the Praetor's son."

"Wait, you mean Baralai?"

"Yes. And just between you and I, he is a big crybaby. When I turned him down for the school dance, he went crying to daddy. So his dad started screwing with my grades, and my life in general. First my GPA went down, then my credit card magically went over the limit, then I couldn't re-register for classes. The whole time Baralai kept saying all my problems would go away if I just spent one night with him."

"Wow, and I thought I had problems. How did you get all of this fixed?"

"With a lot of difficulty. I was able to get my GPA and credit card fixed, but I realized that I couldn't go to the university over there again. So I requested a transfer here. It took a month for everything to get finalized, but they finally said I was accepted." Paine smirked, "The day I got the letter of acceptance, I went to Baralai's dorm, punched him in the face, and walked out of the university."

"So you helped me with Gippal because he reminded you of Baralai?"

"Yes. Though at least Nooj is trying to help you as well. No one over there dared to get in Baralai's way. You're lucky to have allies. Things were going smoothly until I met you. Don't take it the wrong way. I'm not used to people walking up to me and trying to help me. I pushed you away at first because I didn't know what to do."

"You don't need to worry. If I had to go through what you went through, I'd be nervous around people I didn't know either. What finally got you to like me? Was it my smile?" Rikku smiled big for her.

Paine chuckled, "Not exactly. I'd never met someone as determined as you, so I took a risk. You've been a good friend to me Rikku, and I'm sorry for being cruel to you early on."

"_Whoa, whoa, whoa! Did she just apologize to me? Like, a real apology? Man, if I'm dreaming then don't wake me up!_" Rikku took a step back in surprise. "Really, it's no big deal. You don't have to be all serious about it."

"I am. I've never really felt strongly about anyone before in my life. But something about you reeled me in. I ran away yesterday because I almost made a bad slip, and I was terrified it might ruin my chance."

Rikku started to feel a little apprehensive, "Wh..what do you mean?" For some reason, Rikku's knees were shaking. The look Paine gave her was not one she could even remotely decipher. What was that look in her eyes? Was it...longing?

Paine spoke, "I mean this." Before Rikku knew what happened, Paine swept her up in her arms and gave her a long kiss. It happened so quickly that Rikku didn't know what was happening at first. When reality finally did set in, she wrapped her arms around the back of her neck and pulled her closer. She now realized what she had been feeling. It was love, or at least deep affection for Paine.

When the two finally pulled away from each other, Rikku smiled at Paine. "Aww, was that what you were trying to tell me all this time."

Paine just smiled back, "I told you. I'm no good with words." Paine gently set Rikku back on her feet, "Now come on, I'll walk you back to your dorm room."

The two walked in silence back to Rikku's dorm, but both wore a huge grin on their face. The two held hands as they walked, which would have made for a confusing sight to any who might behold it. When they finally reached her dorm room, Rikku stepped up on her toes and gave Paine another kiss.

"Good night. I'll see you tomorrow." Rikku whispered in her ear.

Paine just whispered back, "Bet on it. And thank you for not giving up on me." With that, she walked off down the corridor towards her room.

As Rikku entered, Yuna was seen sitting at her desk, studying like she always did. "Oh, hey Rikku. I thought you were going to be in the city tonight. Everything okay?"

Rikku just wore a big grin on her face, "Every thing's just fine, Yunie. I think I'll just get an early night tonight." She half-skipped into the bathroom to get changed for bed.

Yuna raised an eyebrow at her, "What's got you so happy? Did you find a big pot of gil and decide not to tell anyone?"

Rikku just strode out of the bathroom and practically jumped up into the upper bunk. "Something more valuable and long lasting actually. I might tell you about it tomorrow. Good night." With that, she promptly fell asleep.

Yuna just looked at her sleeping cousin quizzically for a few minutes before finally returning to her homework.

Ending note: I hope you all enjoy this chapter. I'll be leaving Friday the 6th and returning the 16th, so I'll update as quickly as I can when I get back. See you folks soon!

Second note: Yes! I hate Baralai as well! But I'm sure you all figured that out.


	7. First Steps Through the Open Door

A/N: I would like to apologize for the amount of time it took for me to get this chapter up. I hit many snags after returning from the UK that kept me from the word processor. I would like to thank you all for your incredible patience with me. I hope you all enjoy!

**Chapter 7**

**First Steps Through the Open Door**

+++ Yuna and Rikku's Dorm, 8:00 A.M. +++

Everything happened like in a dream. Through the night and into the morning, everything that had happened on the rooftop kept replaying in Rikku's mind over and over again. It seemed so real, but at the same time it seemed to good to be real. Halfway through the night, she had awoken confused, as if she couldn't remember if what had happened was real or not. But she remembered it all to well.

The look of longing in Paine's eyes. How quickly but gently she had swept her off her feet. How tender that first kiss was. It was too real to be a dream. Too personal. She remembered how she had smiled when she remembered all about that special moment on the roof.

She smiled in her sleep as she dreamed about that night, finally awaking to a sharp poke in her side, followed by an all too familiar voice.

"Good lord, Rikku! Wake up! It's after 8! You can't sleep your entire weekend away!" Rikku opened up her eyes to see her cousin standing near the edge of the bed, hands on her hips. What she was doing fully dressed and cleaned up at just after 8 on a Saturday morning was beyond Rikku's comprehension.

"Just because you like to wake up early all the time doesn't mean we all do, you know." Rikku said as she sat up and stretched. She still had a huge grin on her face.

"Well, there's no reason you need to sleep it away, either. Besides, it's a bright and sunny day and you owe me an explanation."

Rikku heaved herself over the side of her bed and hopped down onto the ground, yawning as she landed and spoke, "What do you mean?"

"You came in last night with that same grin on your face, and you wouldn't tell me why. If you found a huge pot of gil, then would you mind sharing the wealth a little here?" Yuna chuckled, "I could use a new blouse after all."

Rikku stuck her tongue out at her. "Real funny, Yuna. But no, I didn't find a pot of gil. I found something even better." The smile made it's way back onto the blonde's face.

"Well, are you gonna tell me, or do I have to guess?"

"Take a guess and I'll tell you if you're wrong. How's that sound?"

"Oh all right, I'll guess." Yuna tapped her foot and scratched her chin for a minute. "You finally got rid of Gippal?"

Rikku hunched over at the sound of that name, "Unfortunately, no. Though that would be a cause for celebration."

"Oh, well I give up! Just tell me already!"

"You give up too easily, you know that?"

Yuna just huffed, "So what? You're killing me here! Just tell me!"

Rikku chuckled, "Just like a little kid at Christmas. But anyway, I'll tell you. You remember that person that I was talking about the other day?"

"What, you mean the person that almost told you something, then ran off?"

"That's the one. But they wanted to meet me up on the roof last night, which is where I was by the way. Sorry for not telling you. But anyways, they told me what it was they were trying to tell me the other night."

Yuna looked at her cousin with a quizzical expression, "What was they were trying to tell you? You've got me interested now."

"Basically, they used to go to Bevelle and had to leave."

Yuna grimaced, "Oh, Bevelle University. I've heard horror stories about that place. They have one of the worst grade ratings in all of Spira, you know. I'm sure it's obvious, but why did they leave?"

"They kept getting chased by this one guy. Couldn't take no for an answer."

"Hmmm, that sounds like someone else we know, doesn't it?"

Rikku laughed, "Yes, it does. But anyways, they apologized to me for running off and told me that I was a good friend for not giving up on them. And then..."

Rikku held in the last part for a few moments. The suspense was obviously killing Yuna, however. "And then what? What happens next? Come on, tell me!"

"All right, all right. They kissed me."

Yuna about fell over. "They did! Rikku, that's great! I knew you could find someone right for you!" She clasped her hands together, "So who is the lucky somebody?"

Without even thinking, Rikku blurted out, "It's a secret!"

Yuna threw her hands to her side, "What, why?"

"Well, uh..." Rikku hadn't actually thought about what she should have told her cousin until right now. The two had known each other since they were very young, and usually considered each other more like sisters than cousins. So they normally didn't keep secrets from each other. But Rikku began wondering if it wouldn't be such a bad idea to not tell her cousin who it was who had kissed her last night. She didn't know how she would take it, and didn't want to alienate herself from her cousin.

Noticing the look on her cousin's face, Rikku finally found the right words, "It's like this. They're kinda shy. And they're scared that if it got out we were dating, and it doesn't work out for whatever reason, we may not be good friends anymore. Plus, they don't know what their friends or family would think. So for right now at least, we're just gonna keep it a secret."

Yuna shrugged, "All right, I guess that seems fair. But when you guys do decide to come out of the closet about it, let me be the first to know."

Rikku saluted, "It's a deal captain."

Yuna chuckled, "Alright. So I'm heading out for a bit. Me and some of my classmates are going to tutor someone in history so he can do good on the make up test. I'll see you later."

Rikku waved to her as she ran out of the room, then proceeded to get changed for the day.

+++ Paine's Dorm, 8:30 A.M. +++

While she was still very excited about this new found relationship, Rikku couldn't help but be confused by it also. It was great getting this close to someone, but at the same time there were other people to consider. Talking with Yuna back in their dorm room had made her realize that. While Rikku had never really questioned her cousin about what she thought about two girls going out, she wasn't sure this was the best time to start.

Yuna was a smart woman, and was extremely open minded. So part of Rikku thought that her cousin wouldn't mind, but another part of her told her that telling Yuna might cause her to not like her anymore. Rikku had always called that part of her brain the danger sense. It told her when something was not right, and right now it was sending up red flags in her head.

And just to make things just a little more confusing, Rikku wondered what Paine thought about all of this. And it was because of this that she found herself outside of Paine's dorm now. It seemed like as good a time as any to talk about what they were going to do about telling other people. For some reason, Rikku got this sense that she might want to keep it under wraps for now as well. Paine seemed to like to surround herself with secrets, so this would just probably seem like another layer to add to the wrapping to her. But still, they were in this together, so she wanted to get her input on it.

Finally reaching her destination, she pushed her thoughts aside for a little while. For now, it was time to see her new girlfriend and get to know her a little better. Rikku knocked on the door to the room and waited for a few minutes. No answer. Puzzled, she knocked on it again. After another few moments, she heard a loud groan and someone shuffling to the door. The latch then unlocked, and Rikku was greeted by a single crimson eye peeking through the crack in the door.

"Rikku, what are you doing up here this early in the morning?"

"What do you mean early? It's only a little after 8:30."

Paine groaned again, "Well, come in I guess." She closed the door and undid the latch so that Rikku could get in. Rikku burst into laughter just as soon as she entered and closed the door however. Paine was sprawled out over her bed wearing nothing but black panties and a black sports bra.

"Did we have a rough night last night? You look like you need some coffee." Rikku giggled.

Paine just shot her an evil glare, "And I'm sure you look glamorous this early in the morning too."

"So what's with this business of 8:30 being too early. You get up earlier than this during the week, don't you?"

Paine slowly sat herself up into a sitting position, "Yea, when I have classes. On the weekends, I like to sleep in. But anyways, what brings you here so early?"

"I wanted to talk to you some more, and take you to lunch. Though I suppose we should get you breakfast first, huh?"

"What did you want to talk about." Paine stood herself up and fumbled through her dresser to find something to put on.

"Well, it's about us. More specifically, what should we tell people."

Paine stopped fumbling through her drawer as Rikku said this. "I haven't really thought about that actually." Paine sat back down on her bed. "I guess we should talk about that huh?"

Rikku pulled a chair away from the desk and sat in front of her girlfriend. "Well, I brought it up because I told Yuna that someone kissed me on the roof, but I didn't say who. And I feel kind of awkward keeping secrets from my cousin."

Paine thought about it for a second, "Well, personally I don't mind telling people. It might be funny to look at people's reactions. But I do see your point. Let me ask you this then, suppose we do tell people about us, what would you be the most afraid of?"

"Well, the biggest thing would be Yuna alienating me. We've known each other since we were small girls. I think of her as my sister more than my cousin. She's always been there for me, and I've always been there for her. So I would be afraid that she may not like me or trust me anymore."

"How does your cousin feel about two women going out?"

"I don't really know. That's not really a topic that we brought up. She's smart and open-minded about pretty much everything, but this is something I just don't really want to risk. How about you, what would be the most afraid of?"

Paine sat there and scratched her chin for a minute, "It's hard to say really. I usually don't care what people think of me. I've always thought it was more important to trust in what you think of yourself, rather than what other people think."

Rikku shrugged, "I guess that's a good way to think. But I also think it's important to care about what the people whom you like the most think about you. Like I care what you think about me."

Paine smiled, "And I care about what you think. Which is why I think we should keep this quiet for a little while. Your cousin obviously means a lot to you, so we'll keep her in the dark until you feel ready to tell her."

Rikku breathed a sigh of relief, "I'm glad that's settled. So I guess that means you need to keep the ice queen act up while we're in public then?"

Paine shrugged, "If that's what you want to call it, then yea. I suppose so. We wouldn't want people getting suspicious." Paine got up and started rifling through her drawers again. "Though, it would be funny to see the look on Gippal's face if he found out you'd rather date me than him." Both women burst into a fit of laughter on that comment.

Having finally found something to wear, Paine walked into the bathroom and changed. She came out wearing a red tank-top and black jeans. Rikku looked her over. "Maybe we should call it the Gothic ice queen look." Paine responded by ruffling the blonde's hair with her hand.

"I suppose we should get something to eat, now that I'm awake. I'll buy lunch, you can buy breakfast." As the two began to walk toward the door, Paine stopped. "Wait, I forgot something."

"What did you forget?"

Paine gently pulled Rikku closer and gave her a deep kiss, which prompted Rikku to wrap her arms around the silver-haired woman. When the two finally broke it off, Paine smiled at her. "Forgot to say good morning to you when you walked in."

"You really are a big softie, aren't you?" Rikku asked.

"Only to those who know me best. Now come on, I'm hungry." Paine replied, leading the younger girl out the door.

+++ Luca Town Square, just after noon +++

The two spent all of their morning in Luca, window shopping and walking around the market district. One would think that Rikku would have spent more money on clothes and shoes, but the contrary was true. Rikku currently had only bought a single shirt, while Paine had two pairs of boots, a pair of running sneakers, two tank tops, a pair of jean shorts, and 3 pairs of socks.

"I never took you to be a shopaholic, Paine." Rikku said, ogling all the merchandise Paine had mysteriously fit into two large bags.

"What, this? This is nothing. I've actually been meaning to come down to town and get these things. This seemed as good as time as any." Paine replied casually. She glanced around the town square for a moment. "Anywhere special you want to eat?"

Rikku scratched her chin, "Nope, you pick. You're buying, and I don't want you to overspend."

Paine looked around again and spotted a small cafe across the town square. "There's a good place. Funny name, but you can't argue with one of their sandwiches. Best in town."

Rikku glanced at the name of the cafe and almost fell over laughing. The Tasty Flan. "That has to be the funniest thing I've ever seen. Can't believe I never noticed this place before."

The two walked over and took a seat at one of the vacant tables. "I think most people are turned away by the name. And it is kind of a small, tucked away cafe. But you'll like it, trust me."

A waiter approached the table, asking to take their orders. Paine went first. "I'll just take the special."

"And what could I get for you ma'am?" The waiter said, addressing Rikku.

"I think I'll take the special also." The waiter bowed and walked away.

"So if you don't mind me asking, how exactly can you afford all that?"

Paine looked at her with an odd look, "I have a credit card."

"Well, I know that. But you have to pay the bill at the end of the month, don't you?"

"Now that's a funny story. Remember when I told you that Baralai had his father freeze my credit card when I wouldn't go out with him?"

"Yea, what about it?"

"Well, Baralai had told his father that the reason he needed to do that was because I was committing fraud."

Rikku's jaw dropped, "He lied!"

Paine shrugged. "Yup. But after I got my transfer here to UCL, he found out the real reason why Baralai had him freeze my account. He wasn't happy. So now all of my credit card bills go to Baralai. He has to pay for them." Paine grinned an evil grin. "So every once and a while I indulge, just to show my appreciation."

Rikku burst out into laughter. "Now that's evil. I almost wish someone would do that to me so they could pay my bill. Right now, my pop pays the bill. He isn't too happy if the bill gets too high, so I have to be careful how much I spend." Rikku switched her voice to sound as close to her father's as possible. "Rikku! What the hell is all these charges for? You're supposed to be studying for school, not go on a shopping spree. You think money grows on trees?"

Paine smirked, "There has to be perks of having the leader of the Al Bhed people as your father. At least he's nice enough to pay for you tuition. I had to kick myself through high school to get a scholarship, and I almost lost that because of someone's selfishness."

Rikku shrugged, "He means well, he just comes across too harshly sometimes. Still, he is my pops, so I respect him. Even if I don't really get along with him."

"I wonder what he'd think of us. We didn't really talk about that, did we?"

A shocked look came across Rikku's face. "I definitely think we shouldn't tell him. I'm not sure how Yuna would take it, but pops would definitely blow a gasket."

"That bad?"

"It's like this. My pops is very outspoken about some things, and same-sex relationships are one of them. If he ever hears about them in the news or something, it sends him off into a rant that's the equivalent to an out of control forest fire."

"Well, we can't just not tell him. You know that right?"

"Yea, I know. But I think it would be best if we tried to break him into it slowly. And it definitely be a good idea to tell Yuna first. She has a way of calming him down. Don't know how she does it, but pops usually listens to her if she has something she wants to say."

Paine smiled, "Going into the fight with all the right assets. Probably a good plan. I'll agree to that. We need to think of a good time to talk to Yuna about it. Any ideas?"

Rikku scowled and racked her brain for a few minutes. "Nope, I've got nothing."

"Ah well, we'll come up with something." It was at that time that the waiter returned with their food. "In the mean time, it's lunch time."

+++ Dorm building, 1:45 P.M. +++

After finishing their lunch, the two walked around town for a little while before returning to their dorm building. Paine walked Rikku up to her dorm room before parting ways with her.

"I'll be at the track at 6 if you want to show up for some more exercise. I want to try out my new track shoes that Baralai bought me." Paine said, adding a smirk at the end.

Rikku laughed, "Yea, I'll be there. It'll be a good way to walk off that sandwich you bought me." Rikku rubbed her stomach. That had been the best turkey and roast beef club she'd had in a long time. "_She can buy me lunch anytime she wants too_."

Paine leaned in and gave her a quick kiss before whispering in her ear, "I'll see you there." With that, the older woman walked off. Rikku waited until Paine walked around the corner before fumbling with the door to get into her dorm. She was surprised to see Yuna fumbling through her drawers.

"What's the matter, Yunie? You lose your sense of fashion?" Rikku chided playfully.

Yuna just looked up and scowled at her. "Real funny, Rikku. For your information, I lost a pair of my shorts." Yuna continued to throw things out of her drawers.

Rikku looked around briefly before pointing out a pair that were lying in the floor of the closet. "You mean those ones?"

Yuna looked up to look where her cousin was pointing. "What? How did they get over there?" She walked over and picked them up.

"Maybe if you hung them up like your supposed to, that wouldn't happen." Rikku did her best to but as much sarcasm as possible into the statement. Yuna replied by glaring daggers at her, which caused Rikku to laugh. "I hope you don't expect me to clean all this up."

Yuna huffed as she moved into the bathroom to change. "Yes, I'll do it when I come out." She closed to door before continuing. "So what were you up too, besides running up the charges on Uncle Cid's credit card."

"Oh, please. I bought one thing. If that bankrupts him, he was in real trouble to begin with."

Yuna laughed as she came out of the bathroom, throwing the skirt she had been wearing into the laundry hamper. "I know, I'm just messing with you. But seriously, what were you up too? Go out with your new friend?"

"Yup. They went shopping with me and then they bought me lunch."

Yuna looked up in surprise. "Wow! You've known each other for such a short time and they're already buying you lunch? How'd you get so lucky?"

Rikku put her hands up behind her head and leaned back on her heels, wearing a huge smile. "I'm just full of luck I guess. Which reminds me. Did you talk with Tidus yet, or do I have to start writing that forged note?"

Yuna shifted her eyes from side to side for a moment, then giggled under her breath. "If I said yes, would you believe me?"

Rikku just sighed and shook her head from side to side. "Yunie, Yunie, Yunie. What am I gonna do with you?"

"Well, it's not as easy as I thougt it would be. I was actually in town around 10 this morning, and I saw him while I was heading back to the campus."

"Why didn't you talk to him then?"

"I was about too. I was about 10 feet from him when I saw Wakka walk up and start talking with him."

"Are you afraid of saying something to him in front of his friends or something?"

Yuna looked down and blushed a little. "Kinda. I mean, what if he says no, or laughs at me or something. I mean, it be one thing if we were by ourselves, but in front of other people? I don't want to look like a fool."

Rikku put her hands on her cousins shoulders. "Ah come on, Yunie. It's like you've always told me. Sometimes you just need to have faith and take the leap. If he says no to you, then so what? At least you'll know, instead of sitting around going 'what if'."

"I wish it was that easy. I had all the confidence in the world, and then I just lost it. I guess I'm just a coward."

Rikku gave her a hug. "No, you're not. You're just in love and don't know how to express it. Give it some time." The two broke up the embrace. "What we're you planning to do that involved you changing?"

"Some friends and I were going to do some window shopping downtown, then stay for a concert. I just didn't want to wear the skirt." Yuna suddenly looked up. "Any chance you wanted to see the concert?"

Rikku stuck her tongue out. "Not if it's what band I think it is."

Yuna just laughed. "What's wrong with Aeon Fayth?"

"They sing weird, religiousy music! It's just not my thing!"

"Alright, alright. It's fine. Anyways, I'm gonna go now. Just leave the mess, I'll clean up when I get back." With that Yuna left, waving at her cousin.

Rikku huffed as she looked around the room. "_She should know by now I can't leave it like this! This is messier than anything I can make!_" The blonde proceeded to move around the room, picking up clothes and returning them to their proper place. As she finished, she got on her computer and started surfing the net. As she did, she recalled her conversation with Paine.

She thought about their talk about what to tell Yuna. Then about how Yuna was having trouble talking to Tidus. And that's when the idea she was looking for hit her.

"THAT'S IT!"

+++ Track, 6 P.M. +++

"Wait, wait, wait. Slow down, Rikku! What are you babbling on about?" Paine asked, trying to calm her jumpy girlfriend down.

"Well, I was surfing the internet when I hit on an idea of how we could break it to Yuna about us. It's so simple, I can't believe I didn't think of it before!" Rikku exclaimed, not even trying to contain her excitement.

The two had met at the track for their seemingly daily run, wearing the usual attire for such an event. Paine had opted for the all black look ("_Does she wear ANYTHING besides black?_") as usual, but Rikku had shown up wearing a pair of bright yellow shorts and an equally bright yellow top, complete with a pair of white running shoes. Rikku had been so anxious to tell Paine her idea that she was barely making any sense until about right now.

"Should I sit down for this?" Paine chided.

Rikku just stuck her tongue out at her. "Oh come on! I'm not that bad, am I?"

Paine just laughed. "Alright, alright. What do you have?"

"It's simple, really. You know Tidus, the blitzball captain?"

"Who doesn't? He's captain of probably the best college blitzball team in all of Spira? You'd have to live on some small, remote island to not really know who he is. Why, what about him?"

"Well, it's like this. Yuna has the hots for him."

Paine sighed. "I can see where this is going. I'm going to take a wild guess and say that we should try to hook the two of them up, right?"

Rikku smiled and scratched the back of her head. "Well, that's the gist of it, yea."

Paine started stretching for her warm-up. "Anyway we could think of another way? Matchmaker isn't exactly my strong point."

Rikku proceeded to stretch as she responded. "Well, how about this. I'll explain a plan and an explanation as to why I think this plan works as we do our run. If you think it can be better, or have another plan, let me know and we'll decide."

Paine shrugged as she stood, "Fair enough, I suppose. We'll keep it to a jog. To hard to talk and run at the same time."

The two of them set off down the track as their discussion continued. "So it's like this. I think if Yuna found out that you and I were seeing each other before she gets a date, she might get the whole jealousy thing going, which is why we should maybe try and get them together."

Paine decided to play counterpoint. "I don't really see how that'll work out. Your cousin doesn't strike me as being a jealous person. She seems too shy."

"That's what concerns me. She's tried talking to him herself, but she chickens out every time. If we left her to her own devices, she'll grow up to be a crazy cat lady. Plus, look at it this way. She might be more accepting of us if we helped her get together with Tidus."

Paine nodded slightly, but decided to keep playing devil's advocate. "That's all good reasoning, but the only flaw in it is a scathing one. What if he doesn't like her, or it doesn't work? We won't exactly be conquering heroes if that becomes the case."

"Well, if that's the case, then that's the case. But I look at it like this, would you rather take the chance and ask him, then know the truth, or would you rather live the rest of your life wondering 'what if I had gone up and asked him'? I mean, you took that chance, didn't you?"

Paine cracked a smile, "Yes, I suppose I did. Glad I went against my instincts for a change. So I guess you win this one. What was your plan, exactly."

"It's not overly complicated, actually. It's a simple 'force them to be in the same room near each other scenario'."

"So what do you want me to do?"

"You need to talk to Yuna and get her to go to some location. Just make something up, like you need help studying or something."

"Where should I get her to go too?"

Rikku scratched her chin for a minute as they slowed to a stop. "Hmmmm. It'd have to be somewhere easily accessible, but at the same time devoid of large numbers or people. Any ideas?"

Paine snapped her fingers, "Is your cousin much of a temple-goer on Sundays?"

Rikku shook her head, "No, not really. She used to go back at home, but since we've been here, she hasn't gone. Probably too busy studying until her eyes bleed to bother attending. Why, what's your idea?"

"Why not just have the meeting at the park at the same time the temple is in session? Pretty much everyone in town is going to be there, so it'll be pretty empty."

"IT'S BRILLIANT!" Rikku proclaimed. Paine covered her ears in surprise, which caused Rikku to giggle innocently, "Sorry. Sometimes I have trouble controlling the volume of my voice."

"Don't worry about it, I didn't need my eardrums anyways." Paine said playfully. "Anyways, I guess this means we'll need to do all this tomorrow then?" Rikku simply nodded in response. Paine sighed, "Guess that means another early morning tomorrow. What are you gonna do?"

Rikku just smiled, "Easy, silly. Set up my end of the deal."

+++ Student Activities Center, 7:30 P.M. +++

Rikku left the track with Paine around 7 so that Paine could get an early night's sleep. This left Rikku to her planning, which all in all was rather simple. Tidus was a rather hard person to find. Between classes, team practice, games, studying, and doing whatever else he felt like in his free time, it was nearly impossible to find him. Though while Tidus might be a hard man to find, there was someone else who knew Tidus that was much easier to find.

Wakka, the team's second-in-command, was far easier to locate at any given time. While he didn't share in the same level of celebrity as his captain did, Wakka was still well known to the students at UCL. He tended to get out a little more and be spontaneous, and was more visible. And every Saturday at 7:30, he met some of his friends in the Activity Center for a weekly game night.

Rikku knew Wakka fairly well. In high school, the two were friends. Not super close friends, but close enough where they could tell each other secrets and not feel insecure about it. The two were also gamer buddies, as Rikku also frequented this meeting every Saturday night. So right on 7:30, in walked in Wakka.

"You're never a minute later to this place every Saturday, are you?" Rikku smirked.

Wakka burst out laughing, "I wouldn't want to be a minute late. Knowing you, you'd probably steal my high score in a heartbeat, ya."

The two started laughing and gave each other a quick hug. "So how's all that training going? Last time I saw you here, you looked like you were about to fall asleep."

Wakka shrugged, "Ya, well that was right before the semi-finals, see. We're kinda cooling off soon, otherwise we'd all pass out, ya see. No reason to kill yourself about it, eh?" Wakka chuckled to himself for a moment. "So anyways, what did ya want to play tonight?"

"Well, before I start kicking your butt at any game, I need a favor."

"Uh oh. Last time yous asked me for a favor, it wasn't good."

Rikku huffed, "Let's not talk about that time. That was...odd. But before I ask you this favor, I need to ask you question. It's about Tidus."

Wakka raised an eyebrow, "About Tidus, eh? What'cha want to know about him?"

Rikku glanced around really quickly looked around before continuing. "Before I ask you this, you can't tell anyone I asked you this."

Wakka waved his hands in front of him, "Hey now! I'm no snitch, you know. Your secret's safe with me, ya."

"Okay, good. It's like this. Yuna has a huge crush on Tidus. I don't know if you noticed it yet or not."

Wakka laughed, "Oh, trust me. I've noticed. She doesn't exactly do a good job of concealing it, ya. So I suppose the next question your gonna ask me is does he have a crush on her, ya?"

"Am I that transparent?"

"Kinda."

"Well, then yes! That's exactly what I wanted to know."

Wakka thought about it for a moment, "Well, I'm pretty sure he does. He does say nice things about her sometimes, ya know. I don't know why he doesn't go over and talk to her, though. Yuna's a nice girl."

"Well, that's what this favor is for. I was wondering if you wanted to help play matchmaker."

"Oh boy, here we go. Ya know what, I'll do it. What do I need to do?"

Rikku jumped up in excitement, "Thank you Wakka! I promise you won't regret it! All you need to do is get him to go to the park just as Temple services start." Rikku's expression changed to worry for a moment, "Uh oh. He doesn't go to the service does he?"

Wakka shook his head, "No. He usually don't. Plus if I make something up, he'll go to that rather than the service, ya. Anything special you want me to say to him?"

Rikku just smiled, "Just tell him that someone special has something they want to tell him."

Wakka shot Rikku a thumbs up, "No problem! Now let's play some games! I've got a high score to keep!"

+++ Yuna and Rikku's Dorm, shortly after 9 P.M. +++

"_I'll get him next week, I swear!_" Rikku had lost to Wakka no fewer than about 10 times at Counterstrike, a record that was impressive for him. But Rikku didn't dwell on that fact, she had other concerns. Like what to do if her plan fell apart. She was confident that it wouldn't, but it never hurt to have a contingency plan. As she walked into her dorm, she was surprised to see her cousin back already.

"I thought you were going to that convert, Yunie." Rikku said, surprised.

"Well, I did. I was just getting tired and crowded, so I came back early. Besides, they played all my favorite songs first, so I got my wish. So what trouble did you get yourself into tonight?"

Rikku acted innocent, "Me? In trouble? How could even suggest such a thing?" Both women broke out in laughter before Rikku continued, "But seriously, nothing much. Paine and I went down to the track and did a little running, then I went to the Game Club meeting."

"Speaking of Paine though, she asked me to help her with her Magical Arts studies. She didn't say anything about it to you later on, did she?"

"No, she didn't. Why's that noteworthy?"

Yuna shrugged, "It isn't really. I just don't know her very well, and she wants some help from me. She didn't strike me to be the kind of person to ask for help."

"Now, Yunie. It's like you've always told me, no matter how tough you are, you're gonna need back up. Maybe you get to be her back-up this time."

"I'm fine with it. It was curious though. She asked me to meet her in the park shortly after Temple services started. Wonder why she would do that?"

Rikku had to struggle to suppress a smile before responding, "Maybe she just likes the quiet in the park when it's empty. She doesn't talk much, as you may have noticed."

Yuna nodded, "Well, can't say I blame her. Anyways, I'm gonna go to bed. Need to get up early if she wants me to meet her at that time. Don't you be up too late either."

"I won't. Have a good night!"

Yuna yawned, "You too." With that, Yuna laid down on her bed and fell asleep.

"_She is so gullible, I swear!_" Rikku said to herself as she got dressed for bed. She had an early morning too.

Ending note: I hope this was worth the wait for you folks out there. For those of you wondering, I'm not intentionally sidetracking myself with the Yuna/Tidus pairing. It will play into the story later. I will get cracking on Chapter 8 with all do haste.


End file.
